The Confederation of Sahel States (AES) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) decided on Saturday 17 October in Dakar to set up joint thematic working groups to prepare a framework cooperation agreement, according to their joint communiqué.
These teams will lead the technical discussions on the future relations between the two organisations. Their findings must be submitted to ministers before the next session, the date and venue of which will be set through diplomatic channels. The framework agreement therefore remains to be negotiated.
The meeting was co-chaired by Senegalese Foreign Minister Cheikh Niang, for ECOWAS, and his Burkinabe counterpart, Karamoko Jean-Marie Traoré, for the AES. The communiqué places these exchanges in the continuation of consultations held on 22 May 2025 in Bamako and affirms the parties' will to safeguard the interests of their populations.
Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger left ECOWAS on 29 January 2025. At that withdrawal, the organisation had requested that, until further notice, community trade treatment for goods and services from these countries be maintained, as well as visa-free rights of movement, residence and establishment for their citizens.
The communiqué of 17 October sets out the continuation of dialogue, without announcing any change to these trade or movement rules.