The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has suspended Guinea-Bissau from all its decision-making organs following Wednesday’s military takeover, intensifying regional pressure on the coup leaders to restore constitutional governance.
The suspension was announced late Thursday after an emergency virtual meeting of the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council (MSC), chaired by Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio. The council said the move was in line with the bloc’s 2001 Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance.
In its communique, the MSC declared that Guinea-Bissau would remain excluded from ECOWAS’ governing bodies “until the restoration of full and effective constitutional order,” condemning what it described as the “illegal abortion of the democratic process” in the country.
Guinea-Bissau plunged into crisis on Wednesday when military officers seized power just days after a tense presidential and legislative election. The coup leaders quickly halted the electoral process, shut down the country’s borders, and blocked the release of official results. Among those arrested was incumbent President Umaro Sissoco Embaló, who analysts said had been positioned to secure re-election.
ECOWAS denounced the arrests and demanded the “immediate and unconditional release” of President Embaló, electoral officials, and detained political figures. The bloc insisted that the will of the electorate must be respected, calling on the military to allow the election management body to publish the results without further interference.
“The MSC condemns in the strongest terms the coup d’état perpetrated on 26 November 2025,” the statement read, adding that the regional body rejects any arrangement that entrenches military rule or undermines the democratic choice of Guinea-Bissau’s citizens.
Despite regional pressure, the coup leaders have moved forward with transition plans, appointing the army’s chief of staff, General Horta N’Tam, as interim head of state for a one-year period.
The political standoff marks yet another governance setback within West Africa, a region grappling with recurring coups and democratic backsliding. ECOWAS has signaled it will continue monitoring developments and consider further actions should the junta fail to comply with its demands.
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