Dakar- Senegal (PANA) -- The heads of UN peacekeeping Missions in West Africa are to meet Friday in Goree on the Senegalese coast, to harmonise their operations, UN sources said in Dakar. Full text...

Lagos- Nigeria (PANA) -- The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja has fixed 27 April 2004 to rule on whether it has jurisdiction over the landmark case filed by a Nigerian businessman against his government over the unilateral closure of its land border with Benin last August. Full text...

Niamey- Niger (PANA) -- Experts from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) began meeting here Tuesday in prelude to a conference of the ECOWAS ministerial council on the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) coming up 19-20 February in Niamey. Full text...

Niamey- Niger (PANA) -- Ministers in charge of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) would meet here 19 February to discuss progress with the blueprint, official sources indicated Monday. Full text...

Lagos- Nigeria (PANA) -- ECOWAS Mediator for Liberia and former Nigerian leader, Abdulsalami Abubakar, has postponed indefinitely his planned trip to Monrovia on Monday due to the non- availability of the major players in the country's peace process, ECOWAS officials said. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) executive secretary, Mohamed Ibn Chambas has commended the international donor community for surpassing the target for Liberia's reconstruction fund. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West Africa Network for Peace-building (WANEP) Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding on enhancing capacity in conflict prevention and good governance in the sub- region. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- A three-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) fact-finding mission arrives in Guinea Bissau Thursday ahead of the country's first elections since the 14 September 2003 military coup that toppled President Koumba Yala, ECOWAS officials said here Tuesday. Full text...

Lome- Togo (PANA) -- The Parliament of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has proposed the creation of an observatory to look out for anomalies concerning the free movement of people and the right of residence within the sub regional bloc. Full text...

Lagos- Nigeria (PANA) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has hailed the recent commissioning of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping and Training Centre in Accra, Ghana, saying it would boost the sub-region's peacekeeping capacity. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is to request the UN to retain some 5,000 troops of its peacekeeping Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), after the Mission's mandate ends in December, ECOWAS sources said Friday. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- Former Nigerian leader Abdulsalami Abubakar, the ECOWAS mediator for Liberia, is due to return to Monrovia in February to help resolve outstanding differences between the government and the two main rebel movements on the implementation of the Accra agreement, ECOWAS officials said Wednesday. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice Thursday adjourned hearing in its first case to 17 February to enable counsels to forward to the court written submissions on the claims and points of law. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice will hear its first case Thursday since inauguration in Abuja, seat of the court. Full text...

Niamey- Niger (PANA) -- An official of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Monday declared here that the sub- regional body would work closely with the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) to alleviate poverty in the region. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Ghanaian President and ECOWAS chair, John Kufuor, Friday urged Japan as a major trading partner to support peace and development efforts in West Africa. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- ECOWAS Executive Secretary Mohammed Ibn Chambas has hailed the return to Cote d'Ivoire's government of national reconciliation by rebel New Forces after a three-month boycott to protest slow implementation of a French-brokered peace accord signed last year. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Secretariat in Abuja, Nigeria, has accredited two more Ambassadors as Permanent Representatives to the 15-member organisation. Full text...

Lagos- Nigeria (PANA) -- The Nigerian government will produce 5. Full text...

Dakar- Senegal (PANA) -- ECOWAS Sunday in Dakar began training some members of its armed forces in various ways to provide children's rights and protection before, during and after armed conflicts. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- ECOWAS leaders on Friday approved the creation of a peace fund to make them cope with the financial burden of maintaining peace and security in the sub-region. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- West African leaders Friday called for a meeting of all major stakeholders to review the "elusive, insufficient and volatile economic growth" of the sub-region and recommend appropriate measures to create sustained higher rates of growth. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- As West African leaders conclude the 27th ordinary ECOWAS summit Friday in Accra, State-owned "Ghanaian Times" says there is hope for the 15-nation community formed in 1975. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Ghana's President John Kufuor has been re-elected to another one-year term as chair of the regional economic bloc ECOWAS, according to officials of the organisation. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Leaders of the five-nation West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) Friday reaffirmed their commitment to launch the second monetary zone for the sub-region as scheduled 1, July 2005. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- The 27th ordinary summit of the ECOWAS Heads of State and Government opened in Accra, Ghana, Friday with the leaders stressing the need for the countries in the sub-region to embrace peace to enable the organisation focus on its objective of economic development. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Ghana, host of the 27th ordinary summit of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government has thrown a tight security cordon around the International Conference Centre venue of the Friday meeting in the nation's capital, Accra. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Speaker of Parliament, Professor Ali Nouhoun Diallo on Thursday said the organisation is determined to achieve integration through the adoption of a common anthem, flag and common currency. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- All is set for the summit of heads of state and governments of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Accra, Ghana on Friday to be dominated by issues related to peace, security and stability in the sub-region. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Thursday signed an agreement on the privileges and immunities of the ECOWAS Parliament and the Court of Justice. Full text...

Cotonou- Benin (PANA) -- Benin President Mathieu Kerekou flies to Accra, Ghana on Friday to attend the 27th conference of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Foreign ministry said Thursday in a statement. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Nigeria and ECOWAS Thursday signed the headquarters agreement outlining the privileges and immunity accorded the ECOWAS Parliament and the Community Court of Justice, both based in the country's capital city of Abuja. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- With West Africa's second largest economy, Cote d'Ivoire, steeped in political crisis and three other countries in the sub-region involved in fragile peace processes, peace and security concerns will again dominate this year's ECOWAS ordinary summit opening in Accra, Ghana, Friday. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- ECOWAS Executive Secretary Mohamed Ibn Chambas assured Thursday the regional economic bloc would take a giant stride in the execution of programmes to foster economic co-operation among the member States in the next two years, despite the domination of its activities by peace and security concerns. Full text...

Praia- Cape Verde (PANA) -- Cape Verdean President Pedro Pires leaves Praia Friday for Accra to attend a summit of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) convened by its current chairman, John Kufuor of Ghana. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- The need to urgently resolve the conflicts in West Africa to pave the way for regional economic development, took the centre stage Wednesday as Foreign Ministers of the organisation began their meeting in the Ghanaian capital, Accra. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- The Speaker of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, Prof. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Ghanaian President John Kufuor is expected to be re-elected for another one-year term as chair of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at the community's 27th ordinary summit Friday in Accra, ECOWAS officials Wednesday. Full text...

Ouagadougou- Burkina Faso (PANA) -- Burkinabe Prime Minister Paramanga Ernest Yonli will represent President Blaise Compaore at Friday's ECOWAS Summit in Accra, Ghana, officials said in Ouagadougou Wednesday. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Denmark has announced a grant of one million dollars to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Peace Fund, aimed at helping to prevent and manage conflicts in the sub-region. Full text...

Accra- Nigeria (PANA) -- An international force of 10,000 troops is needed for the peacekeeping mission in Cote d'Ivoire, a senior official of the sub-regional bloc, ECOWAS, said in Accra Tuesday. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- The 51st session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers opened in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, Monday, with the review of community priority programmes implementation and consideration of reports submitted by ECOWAS institutions topping the agenda. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- The Executive Secretary of ECOWAS, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Monday charged the Council of Ministers to nudge the community towards integration and development, as the Council opened a two-day meeting in Accra, Ghana. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- ECOWAS new Financial Controller Nellie Taylor, formally took the oath of office Monday at a short ceremony on the sidelines of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers meeting in the Ghanaian capital, Accra. Full text...

Dakar- Senegal (PANA) -- The 27th Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS slated for 19 December in Accra, Ghana will review regional security and integration issues, especially the report of the Convergence Council on the performance of the economies of Member States in relation to their monetary co-operation programme. Full text...

Dakar- Senegal (PANA) -- The European Union (EU) has pledged 12 million Euro to support the ECOWAS Mission in Cote d'Ivoire (ECOMICI), an ECOWAS release said. Full text...

Accra- Ghana (PANA) -- Integration, political upheaval and security issues are high on the agenda of the 15-nation ECOWAS summit which opens in the Ghanaian capital, Accra 19 December, officials of the Secretariat said Thursday. Full text...

Lome- Togo (PANA) -- Thirty Togolese gendarmes left Lome on Thursday for Abidjan where they will be deployed to provide security to Ivorian leaders, official sources said in the Togolese capital of Lome. Full text...

Abuja- Nigeria (PANA) -- The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) is to grant ECOWAS some 351,000 US dollars for the formulation of a Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the West African region, under an agreement signed by both organisations in Abuja Thursday. Full text...

Lagos- Nigeria (PANA) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has expressed grave concern about recent events in Cote d'Ivoire, particularly the attempt by organised youths to march into Bouake, besieging of the French military base and calls for the resumption of fighting. Full text...