ECOWAS Appoints Buhari To Head COVID-19 Response

The Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, has appointed President Muhammadu Buhari to coordinate COVID-19 response in the sub-region.

This was announced by Presidential Spokesman Femi Adesina.

The decision to appoint President Buhari was reached at a virtual summit held among the sub-region’s heads on Thursday.

“ECOWAS leaders at an extraordinary summit held by video conference have appointed President Muhammadu Buhari as Champion that will coordinate the COVID-19 response in the sub-region. All the other Presidents will be available to support President Buhari”, Femi Adesina said in a tweet.

ECOWAS leaders at an extraordinary summit held by video conference have appointed President Muhammadu Buhari as Champion that will coordinate the COVID-19 response in the sub-region. All the other Presidents will be available to support President Buhari.

— Femi Adesina (@FemAdesina) April 23, 2020

The organisation held the summit to discuss ongoing efforts at combating COVID-19 by member states.

“The Heads of State will be discussing the Situation and Impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic in the ECOWAS Region. Preceding this Extraordinary Summit, the Ministers in Charge of Finance and the Governors of Central Banks from the Region held a virtual Extraordinary Session on April 21, 2020 on the COVID-19 situation,” it said.

According to updates from the West African Health Organisation (WAHO) as of Tuesday, the confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the region are 5,774.

But 1,616 patients have recovered from the disease, with 147 deaths recorded in the region.