The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice has called for stronger media engagement to promote public awareness and accountability over the implementation of its judgments by member states.
President of the Court, Justice Ricardo Claudio Monteiro Gonçalves, made the call in Abuja at the opening of a three-day training workshop for journalists from ECOWAS member states.
Gonçalves urged journalists to use their platforms to draw attention to the obligations of governments under regional treaties and report on efforts to implement decisions of the regional court.
“Let me also urge you to use your media platforms to engage Member States on the need to faithfully implement the decisions of the Court in accordance with their treaty obligations,” he said.
The intervention comes amid concerns over the gap between the issuance of judgments by the regional court and their practical implementation at the national level.
The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice is the regional judicial institution of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), with jurisdiction that includes human rights cases involving member states. Its judgments may provide remedies to applicants who establish violations, but implementation involves national authorities.
Under Article 24 of the Court’s Supplementary Protocol, judgments are enforced through a writ of execution submitted by the Chief Registrar to the relevant member state, with execution proceeding in accordance with domestic civil procedure rules.
The Court has also maintained in its jurisprudence that member states are obligated to comply with its judgments, while the Court’s direct role in executing those decisions remains limited.
Gonçalves said the enforcement arrangement makes cooperation between the regional court and national institutions critical, particularly given differences in domestic procedures, institutional capacity and the implementation of regional legal instruments.
He disclosed that the Court had intensified engagements with national authorities in countries including Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria to address compliance issues, strengthen institutional cooperation and identify practical challenges affecting enforcement.
The Court also held a meeting with Nigerian authorities in February 2026 on the status of enforcement of its decisions, while engagements in Sierra Leone and Guinea focused on improving coordination between national institutions and the regional judicial body.
A regional meeting of Competent National Authorities was subsequently scheduled to take place in Cotonou, Benin, in June 2026, as part of efforts to develop a collaborative framework for enforcement.
Gonçalves attributed part of the limited public understanding of the Court’s mandate, jurisdiction, procedures and judgments to inadequate media coverage.
He said journalists therefore needed a proper understanding of the Court’s structure, legal responsibilities and judicial processes to report its work accurately and effectively.
The workshop, he added, was designed to strengthen judicial reporting and establish a network of journalists across the ECOWAS region who would provide sustained coverage of the Court’s activities.
The training is expected to equip participating journalists with skills to explain court proceedings, interpret judgments and communicate their implications to the public, including identifying the institutions responsible for implementing decisions and reporting progress on compliance.
The programme brings together journalists, primarily from national broadcast media organisations, from 12 ECOWAS member states: Benin, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Senegal, The Gambia, Togo and Nigeria.
The initiative forms part of the Court’s Annual Cascade Workplan and is aligned with its Strategic Plan 2026–2030, particularly Strategic Goal 4, which focuses on transparency, stakeholder engagement and strategic accountability.
It also supports Strategic Objective 4.2, aimed at strengthening platforms for regular engagement with stakeholders.
The Court said the media initiative would complement its institutional efforts to improve compliance by ensuring that regional judicial decisions receive sustained public scrutiny and that citizens better understand the rights, obligations and institutional responsibilities arising from the Court’s rulings.
