West African leaders plan peacekeeping force to counter 'coup belt' reputation

Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari and Guinea Bissau's President Umaro Sissoco Embalo attend the ground breaking ceremony of the Ecowas Secretariat in Abuja, Nigeria December 4, 2022. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

ABUJA (Reuters) - West African leaders said on Sunday they would establish a regional peacekeeping force to intervene in member states to help restore security and constitutional order in a region that has witnessed several coups in the past two years.

West and Central Africa has made strides in the past decade to shed its reputation as a "coup belt", but the Economic Commission for West African States (ECOWAS) wants to do more to boost constitutional government in its member states.