Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group, has been named the first Chairman of the newly formed ECOWAS Business Council (EBC) by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
During the 95th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers meeting on Wednesday in Abuja, Dr. Omar Touray, President of the ECOWAS Commission, reportedly made the announcement.
The EBC was founded as a stand-alone, private sector-led organization with the vital responsibility of promoting integration and economic progress throughout the subregion.
According to Dr. Touray, the Nigerian millionaire was chosen because of his “vast business experience,” which covers not just the ECOWAS subregion but the entire African continent.
He emphasized that the appointment is consistent with ECOWAS’s new emphasis on raising regional funds instead of waiting for outside assistance.
He mentioned a few forums for economic investment 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 rather than waiting for precarious foreign investments,” stated Touray.
“If given the right incentives and opportunity, 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 convene business sector players through the EBC to talk about regional growth and economic integration.
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