West Africa: Collaborate to deal with security threats, says ECOWAS veep
The ECOWAS veep said women, peace and security and gender issues are high on the agenda of ECOWAS, emphasising the need to collaborate effectively to address the gaps relating to inclusion and participation of women
Damtien Tchintchibidja, the vice president of ECOWAS, has called for effective collaboration to deal with security threats in the West African region of the continent.
She said fostering effective collaboration and cooperation are key components in promoting peace and security in the region.
“It is great to have a partner like Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) who creates room for effective and sustained collaboration,” Tchintchibidja said. She said this when the executive management of KAIPTC, led by the commandant of the centre – Richard Addo Gyane –, paid a courtesy call on her in Abuja, Nigeria.
The visit forms part of the strategic efforts of KAIPTC to foster collaborations with critical partners, including the ECOWAS Commission.
It afforded the centre an opportunity to officially introduce Gyane as the new commandant of the centre to key partners, after his assumption of office in November 2022.
“We are all family and interconnected within the sub-region, so whatever happens in one country affects the other. So, collaboration is key considering the security challenges and realities in the region,” Tchintchibidja stated.
She noted that issues of migration in the region are worrying, saying there is an urgent need to find solutions. It seriously affects women and the younger population.
The ECOWAS veep said women, peace and security and gender issues are high on the agenda of ECOWAS. She emphasised the need to collaborate effectively to address the gaps relating to inclusion and participation of women in all aspects of preventing and recovering from conflicts and peacebuilding.
Gyane said, as a centre of excellence in the region, KAIPTC has collaborated with ECOWAS in ensuring peace and security. He added that for a strengthened security architecture in West Africa, there is a strong need for effective collaboration and cooperation at all levels.
He said KAIPTC’s next five-year strategic plan will focus on women and youth empowerment through the centre’s soon-to-be upgraded Institute for Women, Youth, Peace and Security.
The centre’s commandant said women and the youth are mostly affected by the issues of security threats. Such vulnerable groups are at the heart of the centre’s operations, hence the institute.
Gyane was accompanied by Anorph Barnabas Akanbong, director of training; Robert Adwini (Rtd), director of administration; Horname Noagbesenu, director of policy planning, monitoring and evaluation; Kwesi Aning, director of the Faculty of Academic Affairs and Research; Lawrence Bediako, chief financial officer; Amma Addo-Fening, senior stakeholder engagement officer and Ayesha Nkrumah from the corporate affairs unit at the centre.
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