Lack of information, intelligence sharing bane of terrorism fight

General Francis Behanzi, Commissioner of Political Affairs, Peace and Security of the ECOWAS Commission, says the lack of cooperation and coordination between the Defence and Security Forces within member states on information and intelligence sharing remained a challenge in the fight against terrorism.

He said the compartmentalisation of services constituted the common denominator of the National security of each ECOWAS Member State and a factor of fragility in the face of the common threat posed by the generalised insecurity that had plagued the West African region. 

That, he noted, resulted in transnational organised crimes, terrorism, and violent extremism in the West African Sub-region and the continent. 

General Behanzi, speaking at the maiden two-day conference of the ECOWAS Forum of National Security Advisors (FNSA), said security had expanded and currently affected other sectors such as social, economic, political, environmental, cultural, development, and good governance. 

The two-day conference follows an endorsement by the ECOWAS Authority of Head of States and Governments at its 59th Ordinary Session in Accra for the creation of a permanent FNSA to enhance the optimisation of synergies among the various security, defence, and intelligence agencies across the ECOWAS region. 

It was on the theme: “Enhancing Rapid and Appropriate Regional Responses to Emerging Security Threat in West Africa: Bridging the Gaps between Early Warning and Early Response,” and attended by eleven National Security Advisors out of the 12 active members of ECOWAS and other security experts who facilitated swift and appropriate responses to the existing and emerging threats within the sub-region. 

The ECOWAS FNSA serves as an advisory body to the Mediation and Security Council on issues of regional security in line with the 1999 Protocol establishing the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Peacekeeping, and Security. 

The Forum examined models of regional cooperation and coordination in security and intelligence among ECOWAS countries in response to cross-border crimes, including terrorism and violent extremism.   

It was on the back of recent coup d’états in the West African Sub-Region and the increasing terrorist and violent extremist attacks, with the potential of undermining the regional integration process. 

In the span of 18 months, three successful coups have been recorded with one attempted but failed military takeover. 

General Behanzi said persons appointed to highly strategic positions like National Security Advisors had roles of advice, coordination, and operational impetus on issues of international economic policy, national security, including intelligence, and more generally on strategic issues. 

Similarly, he noted that in line with the priority areas of the ECOWAS Action Plan 2020 – 2024, on the “effective and direct sharing of information between the security services of Member States,” the formal integration of the FNSA structure within ECOWAS would increase the positive achievements of existing platforms. 

A key achievement, he said, would be improvement in the information and intelligence exchange architecture of the West African region for timely response to security problems, especially terrorism.