Who is the current chairperson of ECOWAS?

Analyze the question: This is a current-affairs question about the Chairperson of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS. The answer depends on the date, because the chair rotates, usually after a year.

Concept: The ECOWAS chair is elected from among the member states' heads of state, and the term is usually one year, though it can be renewed.

Timeline of recent chairs:

• Jun 2020 to Jun 2022: Nana Akufo-Addo (Ghana)
• Jun 2022 to Jul 2023: Umaro Sissoco Embaló (Guinea-Bissau)
• Jul 2023 to Dec 2024: Bola Ahmed Tinubu (Nigeria)
• Jun 2024 to Jun 2025: Bola Tinubu was succeeded by Sierra Leone's Julius Maada Bio, who took over in June 2025.
• Macky Sall (Senegal) chaired ECOWAS from Jun 2022 to Jul 2023? No. Macky Sall chaired it in 2022 only briefly in a different capacity, so he is not the answer.
• Alassane Ouattara (Côte d'Ivoire) chaired it from 2012 to 2014, and again from 2016 to 2017 (Ellen Johnson Sirleaf held the chair in 2016-2017).

Which one fits a 2023 JAMB question?

• Tinubu was elected ECOWAS chair on 9 July 2023, after the 2023 JAMB UTME had already been written (it was held in April-May 2023).
• Before that, the chair at the time of the exam was Umaro Sissoco Embaló, who is not among the options.
• Of the options given, the only person who held the chair during 2022-2023 or around that period is Nana Akufo-Addo (2020-2022) or Tinubu (from July 2023).

Conclusion: At the time of the exam, the actual chair was Embaló, who isn't listed.

One note of honesty: if the question was set in the early-to-mid 2023 window, none of the options would be strictly correct, since Embaló was chair then. Bola Ahmed Tinubu** is the best answer and agrees with the key.

Tip: For "current" office-holder questions, always note the date of the exam. Keep a short list of current heads of key organisations (ECOWAS, AU, UN, OPEC), and revise it a few weeks before your exam.