Togo Responds to Call from Bishops in West Africa, Organizes Prayers for Peace in Niger

“Counting on the good will of all for this spiritual work of charity, the Bishops assure you of their communion of prayers,” the Bishops in Togo said.

In their August 7 statement, the Bishops recalled that RECOWA President, Bishop Alexis Touably Youlo “informed his peers in the sub-region that, on their behalf, he had sent a letter of solidarity to the Bishops of Niger, whose country is currently facing a crisis.”

He invited all the Bishops RECOWA “to pray with their faithful, asking God to save the nation from chaos, anarchy and war, and that International and Sub-Regional Institutions take into consideration the suffering of the masses of the people in all the decisions they make about Niger.”

On August 8, Reuters reported that the United States has backed efforts by West African countries to restore constitutional order in Niger, adding that diplomacy was preferable to military intervention.

Members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are preparing for a summit on Thursday, August 10 to discuss their standoff with the Niger junta, which defied an August 6 deadline to reinstate ousted President Bazoum.

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The coup that has seen Niger’s suspension of all political activities and the closure of the country’s borders is the seventh one in West and Central Africa since 2020.

Niger has been experiencing political instability since the election of President Bazoum in 2021 when a coup attempt was thwarted as the military unit tried to seize the presidential palace days before his swearing-in.

Jude Atemanke is a Cameroonian journalist with a passion for Catholic Church communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea in Cameroon. Currently, Jude serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.