LEGAL AND POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS OF WITHDRAWAL OF MEMBERSHIP IN ECOWAS

Abstract

This article discusses the legal and political implications of withdrawal of membership in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), by Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso. There were unconstitutional changes of government in these states for which sanctions were imposed on them. On 28 January 2024, the governments of countries issued a coordinated joint communiqué on national televisions in their respective countries announcing their withdrawal from ECOWAS. The aim of this article is to unravel the constitutionality of their respective notices. Withdrawal is an act by which a member of an international organization willingly terminates its membership. The right to withdraw is most of the time contained in the legal instrument of such an organization and this varies from one to the other. There have been previous withdrawal from ECOWAS by Mauritania and it was done according to the enabling Treaty. Doctrinal methodology is adopted and quantitative analysis of data is also used. The finding of this work shows that the three states of ECOWAS did not follow the provisions of the legal instrument of withdrawal. This work recommends that ECOWAS should not allow itself to be stampeded into lifting sanctions against a recalcitrant state.