ECOWAS Parliament ends Second Ordinary Session

The ECOWAS Parliament has ended its Second Ordinary Session in Abuja, Nigeria with the decision to discuss the free movement of persons and goods at its next meeting in Dakar, Senegal in February 2018.

The second ordinary session of the parliament, which lasted over two weeks, exercised its recently enhanced powers to review the 2018 Draft Community Budget of the region.

It also witnessed the parliament’s approval of the draft budget with an equal revenue and expenditure totaling to 284, 909, 801.47 UA, equivalent to N122bn.

The Speaker of the Parliament, Mr. Moustapha Cissè Lo said the first meeting of the parliament in 2018 will hold on February 12 to 14, in Dakar, Senegal.

The meeting, an International Forum on the Free Movement of Persons and Goods, and Migration issues in the region, will focus in particular on the Libyan situation.

In an earlier resolution during the session, parliament had decided to send a fact-finding delegation to Libya.

According to Mr. Cissè Lo, the grand event will see the participation of some Presidents of the region including President of Senegal, Mackay Sall, who will open the session as well as the President of Niger, Mr. Mahamadou Issoufou.

“As a migrant-route-country to Europe, President Issoufou will speak on on-going efforts and challenges of illegal migration via Niger’s border community, Agadez,” Mr. Cissé Lo said.

The First Extraordinary Session of the Parliament begins immediately after the forum, and runs from February 16 to 22, 2018 in Senegal.

VON.