The Confederation of Sahel States (AES) is advancing the establishment of its institutions. In Ouagadougou, the heads of parliament from Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger met with Confederation President Captain Ibrahim Traoré to receive directives ahead of the official inauguration of the confederal parliament.
Following the meeting, officials stated that the selection of deputies is expected shortly, paving the way for the first session of this new assembly. The confederal parliament’s primary duties will include representing the populations of the three member states, supporting the work of AES institutions, and helping to consolidate the political project promoted by the governments of these countries.
This move marks another milestone in the institutional development of the Alliance of Sahel States, which is now building its own governance bodies after withdrawing from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
However, this gathering takes place against a backdrop of serious security concerns. Recent weeks have seen Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger face a surge in jihadist attacks, some of unprecedented scale, causing heavy casualties among defence forces and civilian populations. Some observers note that senior AES parliamentary authorities are meeting to accelerate the creation of a parliament while no similar high-level session has been announced specifically to address the worsening security crisis, raising questions about the order of priorities.
This perception fuels criticism from those who believe AES leaders are now focusing significantly on building new political institutions even as the security emergency continues to weigh heavily on populations. While not questioning the long-term usefulness of a confederal parliament, these voices argue that such an orientation may be poorly understood in a context where citizens primarily expect concrete responses to the multiplying attacks.
Beyond its institutional importance, this development is also seen by some analysts as the start of a more pronounced political division in West Africa. By gradually developing its own institutions, the AES asserts its autonomy from ECOWAS, risking a deeper separation between the two regional blocs and complicating prospects for broader political and security cooperation.
