AES advances confederal parliament amid rising security fears

The Confederation of Sahel States (AES) continues to establish its governing bodies. In Ouagadougou, the speakers of parliament from Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger met with the confederation’s president, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, to receive directives ahead of the official inauguration of a confederal parliament.

Following the meeting, officials stated that the selection of deputies is expected imminently, paving the way for the inaugural session of this new assembly. The confederal parliament’s mandate includes representing the populations of the three member states, supporting the work of AES institutions, and helping to solidify the political project pursued by the authorities of all three countries.

This step marks another milestone in the institutional architecture of the Alliance of Sahel States, which aims to build its own governance organs after withdrawing from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

However, the gathering occurred against a backdrop of severe security deterioration. In recent weeks, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have faced a surge in jihadist attacks—sometimes on an unprecedented scale—inflicting heavy losses on defense forces and civilian populations. For some observers, seeing the highest parliamentary authorities of the AES meet to fast-track the creation of a parliament, while no comparable high-level meeting has been announced specifically to address the worsening security crisis, raises questions about the order of priorities.

This perception fuels criticism from those who argue that AES leaders are now placing significant emphasis on building new political institutions, even as the urgent security situation continues to weigh heavily on the population. Without questioning the long-term value of a confederal parliament, these voices contend that such a focus may be poorly received at a time when citizens primarily expect concrete responses to the rising number of attacks.

Beyond its institutional importance, this development is also seen by some analysts as the beginning of a more pronounced political split in West Africa. By gradually developing its own institutions, the AES is asserting its autonomy from ECOWAS, potentially deepening the divide between the two regional blocs and complicating prospects for broader political and security cooperation.