Leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) met to address a political crisis in the coup-hit region that deepened in January with military-ruled Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali’s decision to exit the 15-member bloc.

After closed-door talks, ECOWAS said it had decided to lift Niger sanctions including border closures, the freezing of central bank and state assets, and the suspension of commercial transactions with immediate effect.

“Suspension of all commercial and financial transactions between ECOWAS member states and Niger is to be lifted,” Said Omar Touray, president of ECOWAS.

‘’The authority further urges the three member states to resort to dialogue, negotiations and mediation to address their concerns,” he further added.