Military top brass across the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) converged on Monday in Bissau, capital of Guinea-Bissau, to discuss strategies to fight against insurgency, coups and terrorism.
Guinea-Bissau’s Army chief announced in a statement to the press, adding that it would present the modalities of action of the ECOWAS Alert Force in the fight against terrorism.
Head of the Armed Forces of Guinea-Bissau, General Biague Na Ntan who is also the acting chairman of the ECOWAS Chiefs of Staff Committee briefed newsmen adding that the West African Community Alert Force can be used to combat terrorism and restore constitutional order in the region when it is endangered.
“It is necessary to take steps against terrorism and the security situation in the region has reached a level that requires the activation of the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF) to fight terrorism,” ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Abdel-Fatau Musah explained.
The meeting of the regional bloc member countries’ army chiefs came after a series of meetings of heads of military operations and intelligence chiefs.
Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo all had delegations at the meeting.