The three countries' self-appointed military leaders jointly announced on the 28th of January that they were abandoning the bloc after it pressured them to restore constitutional order following a string of coups.

Their departure threatens to further weaken ECOWAS, which has struggled to curtail a retreat of democracy in West Africa that started with a military takeover in Mali in 2020.

Its mediation and security council met in Nigeria's capital Abuja to discuss the issue and an electoral crisis in Senegal, where the unprecedented postponement of a presidential vote has sparked public outcry and international alarm.

Regarding the withdrawal, council chairman Yusuf Maitama Tuggar said the juntas' move would bring more hardship and will do more harm to the common citizens of those three countries.

Before talks, ECOWAS Commission President Omar Touray described the juntas' decision as hasty and said they had failed to abide by the rules for quitting the bloc.

Touray did not specify which withdrawal conditions had been ignored.

Member states wishing to withdraw must give a written one-year notice.

A swift departure also raises pressing questions for the millions of nationals from the three poor and landlocked nations who have settled in neighbouring states as the bloc allows visa-free travel and right to work.