The national flag of West African nation Mali (Wikipedia Commons)
By Gary Raynaldo DIPLOMATIC TIMES
The court of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) on Thursday ordered suspension of sanctions placed against Mali. Leaders from the regional economic bloc known as ECOWAS imposed regional sanctions in January on Mali after its ruling military junta said they would stay in power four more years instead of holding a previously promised election in February. The sanctions included a trade embargo and border closures against the poverty-stricken nation in the Sahel region. Mali’s assets at the Central Bank of West African States have also been frozen as part of the sanctions regime. The measures closed off members’ land and air borders with Mali, suspended non-essential financial transactions, recalled for consultations by ECOWAS Member States of their Ambassadors accredited to Mali. ECOWAS, in imposing the sanctions, said the bloc strongly rejects a delay in elections as far as five years as being “totally unacceptable.” However, the crippling sanctions contributed to massive government debt and job losses in Mali. The action by UEMOA this week is a big victory for the ruling military junta, which claimed the sanctions were illegal and unjustified and backed former colonial power France.
Credit: ecowas.int/ The Economic Community of West African States, also known as ECOWAS, is a regional political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa.
In August 2020, army officers led by Colonel Assimi Goita forced out the elected President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. Facing international outrage and facing threat of sanctions, Goita subsequently promised to restore civilian rule in February 2022 after holding presidential and legislative elections. ECOWAS had steadfastly called for elections to be held in February.
In August 2020, army officers led by Colonel Assimi Goita forced out the elected President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.
Colonel Assimi Goïta is a Malian military officer who has been serving as interim President of Mali since 28 May 2021. Goïta was the leader of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People, a military junta that seized power from former president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta in the 2020 Malian coup.
France-backed ECOWAS leaders met on Friday in Ghana to discuss the Mali situation, and decide whether to uphold the recommendation of dropping the sanctions by the Court.
The West African Monetary and Economic Union (also known under the French acronym, UEMOA) was established with the Treaty signed in Dakar on 10 January, 1994 by the Heads of State and Government of seven West African countries using the CFA Franc in common. The Member States are Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo.
