The president of the Community Court of Justice, ECOWAS, Hon Justice Ricardo Claudio Monteiro Gonçalves, has called on regional journalists to influence Member States to implement the Court’s rulings through their reportage.
He made the call while delivering his address at the opening ceremony of a three-day training workshop for journalists from ECOWAS Member States
The training, which started on Wednesday, is expected to end on Friday at the Seat of the Court in Abuja, Nigeria
“Let me also urge you to use your media platforms to engage Member States on the need to faithfully implement the decisions of the Court in accordance with their treaty obligations
“The judgment enforcement mechanism of the Court gives the Member States the responsibility of enforcing the judgments of the Court, which at the moment is below expectation,” he said
Speaking about the training, he lamented that public understanding of the Court’s mandate, proccsses, proccdurcs and the impact of its judgments on the people and region remains limited, due to gaps in journalists’ reportage on the Court
While noting that journalists occupy an important position in communicating the work of courts to the public, he, however, said journalists must have a clear understanding of the Court’s mandate, its jurisdiction, composition, and structure to report its activities accurately
“This training is, therefore, very important for the Community Court of Justice”, he said, adding that the overall objective was to create an effective network of journalists across the ECOWAS region regularly reporting on the Court to increase visibility
“With the calibre of resource persons from the Registry and Research Departments of the Court and the eminent technical experts in journalism and judicial reporting present at this training, I have no doubt that the overall and specific objectives of the initiative will be achieved, Justice Gonçalves said
The training, holding in Abuja, brings together journalists drawn primarily from national broadcast media organisations from the 12 ECOWAS Member States: Benin, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Senegal, The Gambia, Togo, and the host country, Nigeria
The initiative forms part of the Court’s Annual Cascade Workplan and is aligned with the ECOWAS Court Strategic Plan 2026 – 2030, particularly Strategic Goal 4, which seeks to ensure transparency, stakeholder engagement and strategic accountability; and Strategic Objective 42 on strengthening platforms for regular stakeholder engagement.