President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday participated in a virtual extraordinary summit of the Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West Africa States, ECOWAS.

ECOWAS leaders convened the summit to deliberate on the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected countries globally.

Speaking at the opening session of the summit, the Chairman of ECOWAS and President of Niger Republic, Alhaji Mahamadou Issoufou, said that the pandemic has had devastating effects on the health and economies of the member-states.

Issoufou said the pandemic has claimed many lives and called for collaborative efforts among the member-states to combat it.

Debt cancellation
The Nigerien president, who spoke in French, also advocated for total debts cancellation for African countries to enable the African continent survive the post-coronavirus era.

While commending the World Bank and Africa Development Bank (AfDB) for their contributions so far towards fighting the spread of the deadly Coronavirus, Issoufou urged the two financial institutions to do more for the African continent so as to save more lives.

The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General for West Africa and the Sahel (SRSG), Mr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, who spoke at the event, reiterated the determination of the UN to continue to partner with the African Union and the ECOWAS in fighting the deadly Coronavirus.

He also called for debt cancellation for African countries as part of palliatives to cushion the effects of the virus on their various economies.

The President of ECOWAS, Jean-Claude Kassi Brou had earlier in April in a statement announced financial donations and equipment to its member states in support of their fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

Kassi Brou reaffirmed the commission’s solidarity with member states as they battle to contain the COVID-19 scourge.

About 13 ECOWAS leaders, including President Muhammadu Buhari, are participating in the teleconference as at the time of this report.

By Emmanuel Ukoh