The Federal Government has expressed confidence that Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger — the three Sahel nations that recently withdrew from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) — will eventually return to the regional bloc.

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, gave the assurance on Friday in Abuja while receiving a delegation from the ECOWAS Parliament led by Speaker Memounatou Ibrahima.

“We will continue to work hard towards the success of ECOWAS and all member states, including the three recently withdrawn ones. We are encouraging them to come back,” Tuggar said. “As we keep saying, we have not closed the door on their return. We are confident that they will return because they are part and parcel of the region; it is just a matter of time.”

Tuggar emphasized that although the countries have exited the bloc, Nigeria and other ECOWAS members will continue to engage with them as neighbors and partners in mutual development efforts.

He called on the media to shift focus from the political exits and instead spotlight regional development initiatives.

“We urge the media to de-emphasise the issues of their unfortunate exit and rather highlight the positive developments across the subregion,” the minister said, citing projects like the West African Power Pool, ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme, Abidjan-Lagos Corridor, and the Abidjan-Dakar Corridor.

Describing the ECOWAS Parliament as a “true representation of the citizens of member states,” Tuggar praised its efforts in promoting constitutional and democratic governance.

In her remarks, ECOWAS Parliament Speaker Ibrahima said the visit was to brief the minister on the parliament’s activities over the past 18 months and its future plans, including preparations for its 25th anniversary in November.

“We are working on how we can have more legislative roles in the ECOWAS community,” Ibrahima stated. “We want to support ECOWAS in all its programmes and activities.”

She was accompanied by the Fourth Deputy Speaker, Billay Tunkara, Secretary General Bertin Some, and other senior parliament officials.