ECOWAS Hosts National Peace Commissions in Accra, Pushes for Stronger Regional Peace building Partnerships. By Raymond Enoch
In a bold step toward securing lasting peace and stability in West Africa, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has convened a regional meeting of Member States’ National Peace Commissions, Councils, and Committees in Accra.
The three-day forum, running from April 28 to 30, 2025, seeks to deepen collaboration, foster partnerships, and promote peer learning in mediation and conflict resolution across the subregion.
Organized by the Department of Political Affairs, Peace, and Security (PAPS), the meeting comes at a time when West Africa continues to grapple with evolving security threats. The gathering offers an opportunity for stakeholders to critically assess the functionality of national peace infrastructures, share best practices, and reinforce regional cooperation aimed at conflict prevention and sustainable peacebuilding.
“This meeting is both timely and necessary,” said Mr. Constant Gnacadja, Acting Head of the Division of Mediation and Coordination of Regional and Political Affairs (MCRPA), who represented Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security. “It reinforces our commitment to supporting peace infrastructures in all ECOWAS Member States.”
The meeting draws on the legal foundations of the 1999 ECOWAS Protocol on Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution, Peacekeeping, and Security, along with Article 36 of the 2001 Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, which urges Member States to institutionalize national mediation systems.
Support for the initiative has also come from international partners. Representatives from the European Union Delegation and the German Embassy in Ghana offered goodwill messages, acknowledging the forum’s relevance and the potential it holds for advancing peaceful coexistence amid regional instability.
Participants include peace commission representatives from ECOWAS countries, academic researchers, conflict resolution experts, and officials from the ECOWAS Commission.
The event is supported under the ECOWAS Peace, Security and Governance (EPSG) project, co-financed by the European Union and Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and co-implemented by GIZ GmbH, Expertise France, and Fundación FIAP.
As conversations unfold in Accra, the shared resolve among participants underscores a regional consensus: the road to lasting peace in West Africa lies in unity, shared strategies, and sustained investment in national peace infrastructures.
