The transitional government of Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger have announced their withdrawal from the G5 Sahel via a joint statement dated Friday, December 1, 2023.
Before the latest development, the G5 Sahel or G5S is an institutional framework for the coordination of regional cooperation in development policies and security matters in West Africa.
The body consists of five Sahel countries including Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger.
In the statement sighted by The Herald on Saturday, Niger and Burkina Faso said they have observed that after nearly nine years of existence, the organization is struggling to achieve its objectives.
They asserted that the body has lost its course and the legitimate ambitions of the States to make the G5 Sahel space a zone of security and development, are thwarted by institutional heaviness, heaviness of another age that finishes convincing them that the path of independence and dignity on which they are today engaged, is contrary to participation in the G5
The statement written in French is translated to read thus: “The Transitional Governments of Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger, after a thorough review of the G5 Sahel and the functioning of this organization, have decided in full sovereignty to withdraw Burkina Faso and Niger from all G5 Sahel bodies and bodies including the Joint Force as of November 29, 2023.
“Created on December 19, 2014, by Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauretania, Niger, and Chad, the G5 Sahel intended to pool capacities and means to make the Sahel an area of security and development.
“However, it is clear that after nearly 9 years of existence, the organization is struggling to achieve its objectives. Worse, the legitimate ambitions of our States, to make the G5 Sahel space a zone of security and development, are thwarted by institutional heaviness, heaviness of another age that finishes convincing us that the path of independence and dignity on which we are today engaged, is contrary to participation in the G5
“Sahel in its current form.
“In the common understanding of our two States, the G5 Sahel cannot serve foreign interests at the expense of those of the peoples of the Sahel, let alone accept the diktat of any power in the name of a misguided and infantilizing partnership that denies the right to sovereignty of our peoples and our States.
“It is with all lucidity that Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger have taken the historical responsibility to withdraw from this organization.
“The Transitional Governments of Burkina Faso and the Republic of Niger. deeply committed to the achievement of a lasting peace in the Sahelian space. remain convinced of the need for a united commitment of our States in the fight against terrorism and cross-border crime as well as for the development.
“To this end, Burkina Faso and Niger will maintain their dynamic of cooperation, particularly within the Alliance of Sahel States, to make our Sahelian space an area of sovereignty assumed for the reconquest of our territories and the restoration of peace and security as a guarantee of shared development for the peoples of the Sahel,” the statement added.
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