On Friday, 4 June 2021, two new ambassadors were at the headquarters of the Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Abuja, Nigeria, to present their letters of credence to the President of the Commission, Jean Claude Kassi Brou.

They are the ambassadors of the People’s Republic of China, Cui Jianchun, and the Republic of Guinea Bissau, Joao Ribeiro Butiam Co.

Receiving the letters of credence, President Brou congratulated the two new ambassadors on their appointment and assured them of his support in the success of their mission. He com-mended the regional organisation’s excellent relations with China and Guinea Bissau, an ECO-WAS Member State.

He subsequently invited the ambassadors to work towards stronger cooperation for the bene-fit of regional economic integration and recalled the priority areas in which their assistance would be welcomed. They include the consolidation of democracy, peace and stability in the region, the fight against terrorism, as well as, with reference to China, infrastructure and the fight against the COVID 19 pandemic.

The two new ambassadors accredited to ECOWAS congratulated Mr Jean Claude Kassi Brou for his leadership of the Commission. They reaffirmed their willingness and commitment to strengthen the cooperation between ECOWAS and their respective countries, and promised to assist in the organisation’s peace efforts, and regional integration and economic development agenda.