See the roads that will be closed for ECOWAS summit today

Some parts of the country’s capital, Accra, will experience temporary traffic disruption today [Thursday, September 16, 2021] for an emergency ECOWAS Summit to deliberate on the political instability in Guinea.

The Director of Public Affairs of the Accra Regional Command, Superintendent Alexander Kwaku Obeng, made this known during a media engagement on Wednesday.

He said the road closure is to facilitate the movement of heads of states and governments of the ECOWAS states who will be participating in the extraordinary session at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra.

Kotoka International Airport, Opeibia, Akuafo Roundabout, Afrikiko, Ako-Adjei Interchange, National Theatre, Ridge Roundabout towards Kempinski Hotel are the affected areas.

He also mentioned that police visibility would be prominent in the aforementioned areas to reduce the impact on road users.

“Knowing very well that the summit will come on at a time that we will be experiencing rush hours both morning and evening, not less than 100 police officers will be deployed.

“There will be dispatch riders leading these convoys so as and when there is a proceeding, we [the police] in the very short notice will clear the road for safe exit and then we will open traffic. So we won’t be blocking it for such a long time,” he explained.

This comes after Foreign Affairs Minister, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, announced that the country would be hosting an extraordinary ECOWAS session to discuss the coup d’état in Guinea.

It will be recalled that Lieutenant Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, Leader of the Special Forces Group, ousted President Alpha Conde in Conakry on Sunday, September 5.

Following this incident, the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS convened an extraordinary session via video conference on September 8 under the chairmanship of President Akufo-Addo, to review the political situation in Guinea as well as the political transition in Mali.

Seven ECOWAS Heads of States, Nigeria’s Vice President, the President and Vice of ECOWAS and two foreign ministers are expected to attend.

The meeting will be chaired by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.