SUN JULY 19 2026-theGBJournal| Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Freetown, Sierra Leone, to represent President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, at the 69th Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
On arrival at the Freetown International Airport, Lungi, Senator Shettima was received by the Vice President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh; Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye; and the Nigerian High Commissioner to Sierra Leone, Ambassador Ayo Luther-Ogbomode.
Others were the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Rt. Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo; Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to ECOWAS, Ambassador Olawale Emmanuel Awe; and other officials of the Nigerian High Commission in Sierra Leone.
The Vice President will join Heads of State and Government, ministers, senior officials, regional institutions, and business leaders at the summit taking place today, July 19, 2026, at the Julius Maada Bio International Conference Centre in Freetown.
The meeting is expected to consider major policy decisions and strategic resolutions aimed at strengthening peace and security, democratic governance, regional trade, economic integration, infrastructure development, and sustainable growth across West Africa.
The meeting comes after West African ministers gathered in Sierra Leone this week to deliberate on the region’s worsening security challenges, the implications of the withdrawal of three Sahel states from the regional bloc, and broader economic and governance priorities, as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) seeks to redefine its role amid one of the most testing periods in its history.
The Ministers meeting served as the precursor to the summit of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government which begins today.
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