President Bola Tinubu on Thursday received the outgoing President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, Dr Omar Touray, at the State House in Abuja.
Touray was accompanied to the Presidential Villa by Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye.
The State House media office released photographs of the meeting, but details of the discussions between President Tinubu and the Gambian diplomat were not immediately made public.
The meeting took place just weeks before Touray is expected to leave office as President of the ECOWAS Commission.
Touray assumed leadership of the regional organisation’s executive arm on July 3, 2022, after his nomination by the Government of The Gambia was unanimously endorsed by ECOWAS heads of state.
His tenure, which covers the 2022–2026 period, followed that of Ivorian diplomat Jean-Claude Kassi Brou, who served as Commission President from 2018 to 2022.
During Touray’s four-year tenure, ECOWAS faced significant political and security challenges across West Africa. These included military coups, political instability and growing tensions between the regional bloc and some member states.
The period also saw continued efforts by ECOWAS to promote regional economic integration, diplomatic cooperation and political stability among member countries.
Before becoming ECOWAS Commission President, Touray held several senior diplomatic positions in The Gambia.
He served as The Gambia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and later became Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs under former President Yahya Jammeh.
Touray left the foreign affairs portfolio in September 2009 and subsequently worked with the Islamic Development Bank before returning to diplomatic service.
His leadership of the ECOWAS Commission has placed him at the centre of major regional developments involving governance, security, economic integration and relations among West African states.
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