The Director of Peacekeeping and Regional Security at ECOWAS, Dr Cyriaque Agnekethom, has highlighted the importance of the African Union’s African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) initiative in strengthening the sub-region’s peace support operations.
Agnekethom made this known while speaking with journalists on Friday in Abuja.
He explained that APSA, an African Union programme supported by the European Union (EU) since 2002, was designed to enhance peace and security efforts across the continent through Regional Economic Communities.
Describing APSA as a groundbreaking funding mechanism, Agnekethom said it created a flexible financial framework that allows regional bodies like ECOWAS to implement priority security projects.
“For the first time, the African Union negotiated a dedicated programme with the EU specifically to support regional organisations in peace and security matters.
“This flexible funding arrangement has enabled ECOWAS to access additional resources to carry out key projects aligned with the continent’s peace agenda.
“Through APSA, the EU has also agreed to support the deployment of the African Standby Force for peace support operations,” he said.
Agnekethom disclosed that the deployment of the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF), established to combat terrorism, is expected to begin in 2026, starting with an initial contingent of 1,650 personnel, before scaling up to 5,000.
“The plan is to be ready within 2026 to deploy the first 1,650 troops, with the long-term goal of building a 5,000-strong force dedicated to counter-terrorism,” he added.
He noted that the ESF forms a critical component of the African Union’s continental Standby Force framework, designed to support peacekeeping and crisis response across Africa.
Agnekethom further explained that access to APSA funding requires ECOWAS to submit formal requests to the African Union, which, upon approval, forwards them to the European Union for financing.
According to him, the initiative has significantly eased the financial burden on member states and enhanced cooperation between ECOWAS, the AU and the EU in implementing peace support missions.
“It has helped to strengthen coordination, improve flexibility and ensure that regional security priorities align with continental strategies,” he said.
He added that EU funding under APSA also played a key role in strengthening ECOWAS training institutions and centres of excellence, including the National Defence College in Abuja, the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre in Accra, and the training centre in Bamako, Mali.
Agnekethom said the programme equally supported the development of preventive security mechanisms such as ECOWAS’ Early Warning System and its decentralisation to member states.
Reflecting on past phases of the initiative, he acknowledged that bureaucratic and political challenges sometimes limited full utilisation of available resources.
“Although the instrument offered great opportunities, administrative delays and political constraints affected implementation in some instances,” he noted.
Looking ahead, Agnekethom said ECOWAS would build on lessons learned from the four phases of APSA to strengthen future peace and security programmes across the sub-region.