Fragmented Regionalism: ECOWAS, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) and the Contest for West African Reintegration

Abstract

The withdrawal of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso from ECOWAS in January 2024 following the formation of the Alliance for Sahel States (AES) is a significant challenge to West African regional integration. Therefore, this study examines the factors contributing to the fragmentation, prospects and challenges of reintegration. The study is anchored in Regional Security Complex Theory by Barry Buzan and Ole Waever (2003). Qualitative research design, through thematic/content analysis, was employed to analyze primary documents, such as the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance (2001), Liptako-Gourma Charter (2023), and the ECOWAS Joint Statement of Withdrawal (2024), the Extraordinary Summit of the ECOWAS (ECOWAS, 2024), and secondary academic literature. The analysis showed political, security, economic, institutional, and external regional fragmentation factors, such as bias on the part of ECOWAS in upholding democracy, economic dependence on the former colonial masters, inability of the ECOWAS to tackle insecurities in the Sahel, inadequacy of ECOWAS protocols in addressing crisis, and the external-partnership supports from Russia, China, and Turkey. The prospects for reintegration include ECOWAS open door for dialogue and certain considerations; possible disenchantment with the military regimes from the people; etc. Lastly, reintegration can be problematic because the relationship between the ECOWAS and AES states has gone sour. Secondly, the AES countries might feel emboldened by the external partnerships from Russia, China, and Turkey. The challenges for reintegration, however, include soured bilateral relations and the possibility of being emboldened by the external partnerships. The study concludes that though immediate reintegration seems unlikely, sustained diplomatic engagement, calibrated sanctions, and selective security operations could transform the current fragmentation into an institutional renewal of ECOWAS. Therefore, it recommends that the ECOWAS should adopt hybrid strategy of principled pragmatism that marries democratic norms with the pragmatic demand of regional stability.