Alliance of Sahel States Introduces New Biometric Passports

Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger are launching new biometric passports as they exit the West African regional bloc, ECOWAS. This development coincides with the formation of their new regional confederation, the Alliance of Sahel States, following their formal exit notification to ECOWAS in January 2024.

ECOWAS asserts that these nations can officially leave only from January 25, 2024. However, they no longer view themselves as part of ECOWAS, citing neglect of their interests. In response, ECOWAS has tasked Senegal with convincing these countries to return, a task complicated by their new regional commitments.

On September 15, Mali’s transitional president, Kanal Asimiguaita, announced the imminent release of a new biometric passport for the Alliance. This passport is designed to streamline travel documents across member states, allowing for visa-free movement among them.

Historically, citizens of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger enjoyed free movement within ECOWAS. Their departure threatens this privilege, potentially necessitating visas to enter the remaining ECOWAS states such as Benin, Cape Verde, and Nigeria, among others.

The ECOWAS passport, established in 2000, enables its holders to travel throughout the region without visas. The Visa Openness Index shows that ECOWAS citizens can access 97% of the bloc’s countries without visas. However, the departure of these three countries, with a combined population of 72 million, could jeopardize this benefit.

The new passports reflect these countries' desire for greater control over their immigration policies, free from ECOWAS bureaucracy. ECOWAS’s 1979 protocol allows member states' citizens to enter, reside, and conduct business freely, although host nations can refuse entry to those without valid documents.

As these changes take effect, the Alliance of Sahel States and its new passport system are set to reshape regional dynamics in West Africa, promoting autonomy and new collaborative frameworks