ECOWAS celebrates its 49th Anniversary by sensitising schoolchildren in Abuja on its mission, major achievements and vision for the future

To commemorate the 49th anniversary of the creation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the ECOWAS Commission’s Directorate of Communication organised a sensitisation session for secondary school pupils on Monday 27 May at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria. The aim of the session was to inform students about the mission, key achievements and vision of ECOWAS for the future.

This interactive awareness-raising session was marked by presentations on some of ECOWAS’s achievements and a series of exchanges on various programmes implemented by ECOWAS for the benefit of the populations of the 15 Member States, particularly in the areas of external relations, humanitarian assistance, the ECOWAS volunteer programme, the ECOWAS internship and scholarship programme, free movement, infrastructure and transport.

Over 200 students from 3 secondary schools and an orphanage in Abuja were invited to the ECOWAS Commission headquarters for this sensitisation session. The schools in question were Africa Community School, Community Secondary School, Army Day Secondary School and Treasure Orphanage.

In her address to the young students, H.E. Mrs Damtien L. TCHINTCHIBIDJA, Vice-President of the ECOWAS Commission, encouraged the young students to make their parents proud through their school results. She particularly invited the young students to take a greater interest in ECOWAS so that they can better play their role in the future and become active members of society.

The activity was marked by a series of interactive question-and-answer games led by the Vice-President of the ECOWAS Commission and ECOWAS staff. The main ECOWAS presentations were made by Dr Babatunde IDOWU for External Relations, Mrs Francisca ECHABOR for Humanitarian Affairs, Mrs Aicha Usman for Scholarships and Internships and Mr Peter Ofori-Asumadu for Infrastructure and Transport.