ECOWAS Chairman Bio Meets Guinea-Bissau Junta

The chairman of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and Sierra Leonean President, Julius Mada Bio, said he has held talks with the military leadership of Guinea-Bissau, as regional efforts intensified to restore constitutional rule in the West African nation.

In a statement posted on his X account on Monday, Bio said the engagement followed resolutions reached at an extraordinary session of the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council following the reported coup in Guinea-Bissau last week.

“Pursuant to the communiqué of the Extraordinary Session of the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council, I engaged in a constructive discussion with the military leadership of Guinea-Bissau,” he wrote.

Bio added that the regional bloc remained firm in its push to ensure democratic governance is reinstated in the country.

“As Chairperson of the Authority of Heads of State and Government, I reaffirmed ECOWAS’s unwavering commitment to restore constitutional order,” he said.

ECOWAS intervention in Guinea-Bissau comes against a background of deep-rooted political instability and a history of military coups in the country. Since gaining independence in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has suffered repeated disruptions to democratic governance, with frequent military interventions.

The current crisis erupted following presidential and legislative elections held on November 23, 2025. Both the then incumbent president, Umaro Embaló, and the main opposition candidate, Fernando Dias da Costa, claimed victory, which triggered tensions.

On November 26, soldiers moved on the country’s key government sites, announcing they had “taken total control”, suspending the electoral process and sealing off all land, air and sea borders while imposing an overnight curfew.

On November 27, the junta, the High Military Command for the Restoration of National Security and Public Order, appointed Horta Inta-A Na Man as transitional president for one year. Shortly after assuming power, the junta reversed its decision to keep the country sealed; the borders were reopened to ease economic pressure and mitigate humanitarian concerns.

In response to these events, the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council convened an extraordinary virtual session on November 28, chaired by Bio.

The bloc condemned the coup, demanded the immediate release of all detained officials, and suspended Guinea-Bissau from all ECOWAS decision-making bodies until full constitutional order is restored.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan, who led the ECOWAS observer team to the country’s polls, questioned the genuineness of the coup, hinting that it was staged by President Embaló to avoid election defeat.