Nigeria Fully Settles N85bn ECOWAS Levy for 2023 and First Half of 2024

Nigeria has fully paid its dues to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for the year 2023 and the first half of 2024, totaling N85 billion (about $54 million).

This announcement was made by Omar Touray, the President of the ECOWAS Commission, during a major meeting in Abuja.

This is the first time in 19 years that Nigeria has managed to pay its full community levy on time. Speaking at the 66th Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government, Touray said,

“For the first time in 19 years, Nigeria has paid 100% of its community levy from 2023 up to July 2024,” highlighting the payment made on December 13, 2024.

Touray credited Nigerian President Bola Tinubu’s leadership and Nigeria’s commitment to working together with other West African countries for this achievement.

However, he also mentioned his concern about other countries in the region being slow to pay their dues, which could affect the community’s financial health. He urged these countries to catch up with their payments.

The meeting, hosted by President Tinubu, who is also the Chairman of the ECOWAS Heads of State, was attended by 12 presidents.

It is happening at a time when there are tensions due to Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger leaving ECOWAS in January 2024.

The leaders are discussing how to deal with these countries, how to handle ongoing political problems and terrorism in the region, and how to move forward with plans for a single regional currency called the ECO.

The discussions are also focusing on helping countries in the region that are currently ruled by military governments transition back to civilian rule.