Dangote Bags Major Appointment from ECOWAS

Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group, has been named the first Chairman of the recently formed ECOWAS Business Council (EBC) by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

The nomination was reportedly announced by ECOWAS Commission President Dr. Omar Touray on Wednesday in Abuja during the 95th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers.

The EBC was founded as a stand-alone, private sector-led organization with the vital mission of promoting integration and economic progress throughout the subregion.

According to Dr. Touray, the Nigerian millionaire was selected because of his “vast business experience,” which extends beyond the ECOWAS subregion to the entire African continent.

He emphasized that the appointment is in line with ECOWAS’s new emphasis on raising regional capital as opposed to waiting for outside assistance.

He mentioned a few economic investment forums that were held in West Africa this year, including the Forum Senegal Invest, the West African Economic Summit in Nigeria, and the “Invest in District Savanes” forum in Côte d’Ivoire.

“This appetite for intra-regional investment underscores the necessity of mobilizing capital within our region to build our community instead of waiting for precarious foreign investments,” Touray stated.

“If given the right incentives and opportunities, I am confident that our regional private sector actors can lead the way in the development of our community with the kind of investments we have seen from people like Alhaji Dangote.”

He stated that ECOWAS would bring together business sector players to talk about regional development and economic integration through the EBC.