00:05A gathering of military officials from various West African states.
00:09They say the move signals a stronger commitment to collective regional defense.
00:14The discussion took place against the backdrop of the ever-changing security environment,
00:26due strategic alliances, due political interests in our region that have also added to the major
00:35security challenges facing the region. First and foremost, the threat of terrorism and
00:43violent extremism.
00:45Abdel Fattah Moussa added that the region continues to face piracy, sea robbery, illegal fishing
00:51and the dumping of hazardous waste at sea, among other things.
00:55As the 44th Ordinary Meeting of ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Defense Staff comes to an end,
01:01military officials here at the meeting have made commitments in protecting regional security
01:06with efforts to combat a emerging threat across West Africa and the Sahel.
01:11Sierra Leone's Chief of Defense Staff, who doubles as the chairman of the ECOWAS Chiefs of Defense
01:16Staff, says the deliberations at the meeting will go a long way and they hope to hold more
01:21meetings via Zoom in the future.
01:23We have to go the extra mile. It's difficult, but let's convince our political leaders that
01:29the only artificial how to deliver peace, stability, development and prosperity for our sub-regions
01:36is the ECOWAS standby force, and by extension, our individual armies.
01:41So we want to bring various communities to be able to support.
01:46With the standby force set to roll out in phases, ECOWAS leaders say the mission aims to rebuild
01:52trust, safeguard democratic governance and strengthen regional unity at a crucial time.
01:57For more information, the
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