The first parliamentary session of the Sahel States Confederation (AES) officially commenced on Monday in Niamey, marking the formal induction of 45 confederal deputies representing Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.
The significant event, held at the Mahatma Gandhi Conference Centre, was presided over by Ousmane Bougouma, who serves as the President of the Legislative Assembly of the People of Burkina Faso and assumed the role of president for this inaugural confederal parliamentary session.
During the opening ceremony, Burkina Faso’s President Ibrahim Traoré, who currently holds the rotating presidency of the Sahel States Confederation, delivered a compelling address. He urged the newly installed deputies to prioritize the overarching general interests of the Confederation above any partisan agendas or individual national considerations.
The confederal parliament is composed of 45 members, with each of the three member nations contributing 15 representatives. Dignitaries present at the ceremony included Nigerien Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine, attending on behalf of the Nigerien president, alongside various leaders from the parliamentary institutions of the three member states.
Representatives from the Chadian and Togolese parliaments also participated in the proceedings as invited guests. This pivotal first session, scheduled to run from August 24 to 29 in Niamey, is designed to establish a robust framework for enhanced parliamentary collaboration among the three AES member countries.
Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger formally established the Sahel States Confederation in July 2024, following their joint announcement in January of the same year to withdraw from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The Confederation’s fundamental objective is to deepen cooperation across its member states, particularly focusing on crucial areas such as defense, regional security, and sustainable development initiatives within the West Africa region.
