In the streets of Bamako, hundreds of people demonstrated on Thursday 1er February, their support after the announcement of the withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Created in 1975 to strengthen cooperation and regional integration, this bloc, made up of fifteen states, had been trying for months to push for a return of civilians at the head of these countries led by juntas, even going so far as to threaten a time of an unprecedented military intervention in Niger.
“ This is the beginning of a new stage in the life of our nationsenthused Mahamane Niare, spokesperson for a youth organization, in the Malian capital when interviewed by Agence France-Presse. We will face difficult times, but by working and joining hands in the three countries, we will be able to overcome all these difficulties. » In Burkina Faso, the Prime Minister, Apollinaire Joachim Kyélem de Tambèla, spoke of a decision “ carefully considered”grateful that she would not “not without consequences on [leurs] States and their economies ».
Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, which have been led by the military since 2020, 2022 and 2023 respectively, are among the twenty poorest economies in the world. Their GDP per capita is below 2,500 dollars annually (2,320 euros) in purchasing power parity, according to the World Bank. These three Sahelian states have no access to the sea, forcing them to import and export via their coastal neighbors, such as Ivory Coast, Benin, Togo, Ghana and Nigeria. ECOWAS notably guarantees the free movement of goods and people. This withdrawal − it will be effective in one year, according to the statutes of the bloc, and ” without delay “according to the three governments − should therefore have economic repercussions.
Limited intra-community trade
For Charlie Robertson, head of macroeconomic strategy at FIM Partners, this decision is nothing less than “ the stupidest since the United Kingdom voted for Brexit ». “They represent 8% of ECOWAS GDP and lose access to markets like Nigeria and Ghana, which together have a GDP of $467 billion », he adds in a written note. Questioned by journalists, the director of the Africa department of the International Monetary Fund, Abebe Aemro Selassie, for his part, stressed that the three States were going to be the first losers, particularly facing “higher transactional costs ».
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