Nigeria, July 23 -- Security and economic cooperation in West Africa was dealt a blow by the withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in January. The three countries are governed by coup leaders, and in September 2023 formed an alternative security partnership - the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).

Pragmatic bilateral cooperation between AES and other West African countries, such as Senegal and Togo, has taken place, and in May the AES and ECOWAS agreed on the need to jointly tackle terrorism. These are positive steps, but don't match the benefits of institutional security alliances in a volatile region.

Many parts of West Africa are affected by cross-border terrorism, organis...