President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has been elected the new Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Niamey, Niger.

Akufo-Addo will take over the 12-month rotational role from Nigerien President Issoufou Mahamadou who was elected at the 55th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS leaders.

A communique by the Information Ministry’s official Twitter dated September 7, 2020, read; “President Nana Akufo-Addo has just been elected as the new Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), at the ongoing 57th ECOWAS Summit, which is being held in Niamey, capital of Niger.”

The ongoing meeting of the Heads of State will discuss amongst other issues, the outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus in West Africa, the ECOWAS Single Currency Programme, and the political impasse in Mali.

The leaders will also consider reports form the 44th Ordinary Session of the Mediation and Security Council at the Ministerial Level, and the 84th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers, which preceded the Summit.

President Akufo-Addo was accompanied by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway; Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta; Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, and officials of the Presidency and the Foreign Ministry.

The President will return to Ghana on Monday, September 7, 2020, and, in his absence, the Vice President, Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, shall, in accordance with Article 60(8) of the Constitution, act in his stead.

#Breaking President @NAkufoAddo has just been elected as the new Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), at the ongoing 57th ECOWAS Summit, which is being held in Niamey, capital of Niger pic.twitter.com/TBhFzxoBAW

— Ministry of Information (@moigovgh) September 7, 2020