LIBERIA HOSTS ECOWAS FIRST EXTRAORDINARY SESSION FOR THE YEAR
By: Legislative Correspondent
Monrovia, March 2, 2022: Liberia is currently hosting the ECOWAS Fifth Legislative Parliamentary Seminar and the First Extraordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament for the Year 2022.
The Parliamentary Seminar kicks off on the 3rd of March and runs until the 5th, while the extraordinary session will run from March 8-9 at the Ministerial Complex in Monrovia.
The seminar is being held under the Theme, ECOWAS Vision 2050: formulation process and implementation challenges. It will enable member states of the ECOWAS Parliament to take ownership of Vision 2050 and ensure their full involvement in its implementation.
According to a MICAT release, President George M. Weah is expected to deliver the keynote address during the opening ceremony of the extraordinary session of the ECOWAS Parliament, at which time discussions on the political and security challenges in the subregion will be discussed.
The sixtieth Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS adopted the ECOWAS Vision 2050 on December 12, 2021 in Abuja, with the intention of promoting the emergence, by 2050, of “a fully integrated community of peoples in a peaceful and prosperous region with strong institutions and respect for fundamental freedoms, working for inclusive and sustainable development”.
The body agreed that the successful implementation of ECOWAS Vision 2050 requires the following key guidelines: (i) assertion of leadership and political will, (ii) ownership and shared responsibility, (iii) complementarity and subsidiarity, (iv) transparency and accountability, (vi) sustainability.
During its second extraordinary session in Monrovia last year, ECOWAS Parliament expressed a favorable opinion on the adoption of the vision. It then decided to hold a parliamentary seminar to enable Members of Parliament to understand ECOWAS’ Vision 2050 while ensuring the involvement of parliamentarians in the development of operational documents – particularly the medium-term strategic framework with appropriate plans, to support the implementation of the vision.
At the end of the 2022 first extraordinary session, it is expected that Members of the Parliament will be fully involved in the community’s decision-making process to ensure the full participation of the people of West Africa in achieving the 2050 vision.
The extraordinary session will also propose concrete actions, measures, and activities to support and complement the work of the ECOWAS Commission in addressing the challenges associated with the implementation of ECOWAS Vision 2050.
