West African Elders Forum (WAEF) has urged African leaders to put citizens’ welfare, peace, and security at the centre of governance, to consolidate democracy in the region.
Participants at the ‘State of Democracy’ webinar, organised by WAEF, an Initiative of Goodluck Jonathan Foundation (GJF), gave this advice in a statement by its Communications Officer, Wealth Ominabo, in Abuja.
Themed “Making meaning of democratic reversals in West Africa,” participants examined the challenges to governance in the region and how best to advance democracy amid growing trend of coups and unconstitutional change of government.
The speakers at the virtual meeting also urged governments, regional and sub-regional bodies, to invest more in citizen-centric initiatives that would help serve as a buffer against threats to democracy.
They also called for strengthening democratic frameworks in countries to ensure accountability and guarantee free and credible elections.
The panelists noted that a…