Coups in Mali, Chad & Guinea: Is democracy at risk in West Africa? | DW News

ECOWAS is getting tough with Guinea: After the military coup there, the Economic Community of West African States has imposed travel bans and financial sanctions on the country’s new leaders and their families. At a summit in Ghana Ecowas leaders also demanded the unconditional release of Guinean President Alpha Condé as well as a “very short“ transition demands are the bloc’s toughest response yet to the military takeover in Guinea earlier this month. The announcement was made as coup leaders in the country wrapped up a week of consultations with various stakeholders to map out a framework for a transitional government. And it’s not just Guinea. Across western and central Africa three more countries have been hit by military takeovers: Mali, Niger and Chad. First Mali, Guinea’s direct neighbor: Since last August there have been two successful coups in the country: Malian Forces mutinied in August 2020 forcing 75-year-old President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta to resign, after months of ,