Vice President Kashim Shettima has urged the new leadership of the Economic Community of West African States to make regional unity, economic integration and stronger cooperation among member states central to its agenda. According to a State House press release issued on September 26, 2026, by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications in the Office of the Vice President, Shettima said ECOWAS must strengthen relations across West Africa, rebuild trust among countries in the sub region and pursue policies capable of producing measurable improvements in the lives and livelihoods of citizens.
The Vice President spoke in New York during a meeting with a delegation of the ECOWAS Commission led by its new President, General Birame Diop, on the sidelines of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly. Shettima stressed that the Commission’s new management was assuming office at a challenging period for West Africa, with insecurity, development deficits and weakening regional cohesion placing increasing pressure on the bloc.
The Vice President therefore urged the leadership to go beyond routine administration and deliberately create stronger bonds among governments and people across the region. “Beyond your administrative duties, your leadership of the Commission must make deliberate efforts to build bridges of friendship across the sub region,” Shettima said. He also urged ECOWAS to take the lead in engaging the Alliance of Sahel States, saying the regional body should remain at the centre of efforts to strengthen dialogue, cooperation and stability across West Africa.
“ECOWAS should be at the forefront of our engagement with emerging blocs in the area such as the Alliance of Sahel States,” he said. Shettima added that ECOWAS under Diop’s leadership should champion the cause of regional integration and strengthen the bonds of unity and friendship among West African peoples.
The Vice President also called for stronger private sector participation in major regional infrastructure projects, particularly the Lagos Abidjan highway. He said private capital and expertise would be important to delivering infrastructure capable of improving trade, movement and economic connectivity across the sub region. Shettima congratulated Diop on his emergence as President of the ECOWAS Commission and said his tenure had begun at a time when greater coordination and cohesion were required among regional leaders.
He assured the new ECOWAS leadership of Nigeria’s continued support, saying President Bola Tinubu remained committed to initiatives aimed at strengthening the regional body and advancing West Africa’s development. “My boss, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is a man of honor and conviction who will always support efforts aimed at advancing the transformation of ECOWAS as a regional body, and the progress of the area in general,” Shettima said. The Vice President added that Nigeria would continue to provide an enabling environment for ECOWAS to function effectively and pursue the objectives envisioned by its founding leaders.
Diop acknowledged Nigeria’s role in the establishment and sustenance of ECOWAS and its contribution to regional stability over the years. He said the Commission was confronting serious challenges, including insecurity and lagging development, and would continue to look to Nigeria for leadership and support. Diop described ECOWAS as an important instrument for regional stability and urged member countries to strengthen cooperation with Nigeria in the pursuit of inclusive development and a more prosperous future for West African peoples.
The meeting was attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs Bianca Odumegwu Ojukwu, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Jimoh Ibrahim, and senior officials of the ECOWAS Commission.
