President Tinubu To Attend ECOWAS 50th Anniversary Celebration In Lagos.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is set to depart Abuja for Lagos on Tuesday, 27 May 2025, to join fellow West African leaders in commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The milestone event, which celebrates the regional bloc’s golden jubilee, will take place at the prestigious Eko Hotels and Suites in Lagos.
As the current Chairman of ECOWAS, President Tinubu is expected to deliver a keynote address highlighting the organisation’s significant achievements over the past five decades. The event will also feature a review of ECOWAS’s 50-year journey by Professor Bolaji Akinyemi, Chairman of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) and former Minister of External Affairs. Panellists at the NIIA will further analyse the bloc’s contributions to regional integration and economic development. The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray, will deliver a welcome address to open the proceedings.
The golden jubilee celebrations were officially launched last month in Accra, Ghana, where President Tinubu, represented by Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu, called for a people-centred approach to regional integration. He emphasised the need for deeper economic cooperation among member states and greater support for intra-regional trade to ensure the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) delivers transformative results for the region.
While in Lagos, President Tinubu will also commission several projects on Saturday, 31 May, as part of his administration’s ongoing efforts to deliver infrastructure development across Nigeria. Additionally, he will observe the Eid-el-Kabir prayers at the State House, Dodan Barracks, before returning to Abuja.
The ECOWAS 50th anniversary celebration underscores the bloc’s enduring commitment to fostering economic cooperation, peace, and stability across West Africa. Since its establishment in 1975, ECOWAS has been a cornerstone of regional integration, promoting free trade, mobility, and collective security among its 15 member states.
