Abuja — A two-day meeting of the ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Defence Staff (CCDS) opens in Abuja on 4th October 2011 to consider the recommendations of an extraordinary meeting of the Chiefs of Defence Staff regarding the region's response to the security situation along the common border between Cote d'Ivoire and Liberia and the general security situation in the region.
The extra-ordinary meeting of Chiefs of Defence Staff of Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Senegal, held on 13th September 2011, was in compliance with the directive by an extra-ordinary mini summit of the Heads of State and Government of the six countries which took place in Abuja on 10th September 2011.
The CCDS meeting will be attended by the Defence Chiefs of ECOWAS Member States, the Force Commanders of the United Nations Missions in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) and Liberia (UNMIL), the Commander of the French Forces based in Dakar and representatives from the United Nations in West Africa (UNOWA) office, also based in Dakar. The Force Commanders of UNOCI and UNMIL will also brief members of the committee during the meeting.
In addition, the Defence Chiefs will consider the proposals by the Forum of Ministers of Security on the code of conduct for military-security personnel, maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea; counter-terrorism strategy and an INTERPOL-European Union-ECOWAS initiative on security. They will also be updated on the status of the Bamako-based ECOWAS Small Arms Programme (ECOSAP) and discuss other issues relating to the regional logistic depot in Freetown.
They will also be briefed by the ECOWAS presidential task force on malaria on the regional initiative for the elimination of the disease.