Abuja-Nigeria — The President of the ECOWAS Commission, His Excellency Kadré Désiré Ouédraogo and the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General to West Africa, Ambassador Said Djinnit, met at the Commission in Abuja on Monday, 14th January 2013, to review cooperation between their institutions, especially the implementation of the UN Resolution 2085 on Mali.

The meeting also covered talks on drug trafficking and organized crime, piracy and insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea, security sector reforms in Guinea Bissau, counter-terrorism, and regional cooperation. On Mali, the officials emphasized the need to accelerate the implementation of Resolution 2085 and the intensification of consultations among partners, including on the margins of the forth-coming high-level meetings of the African Union in Addis Ababa.

Ambassador Djinnit, who led a four-member delegation, commended ECOWAS for its excellent work which is bearing positive impacts on Africa and beyond, in spite of its many challenges, including limited resources. Also at the meeting were the ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Mrs. Salamatu Hussaini Suleiman and other senior officials of the Commission.