Sierra Leone’s Minority Leader has urged the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to move beyond climate conferences and discussions and implement concrete measures to protect communities from floods, mudslides and environmental degradation.

He said West African countries must translate climate commitments into enforceable laws and practical interventions that can be implemented across member states.

“Our actions should not be just limited to conferences, you know, to just talk shop. There should be proactive measures,” he said.

The Sierra Leonean legislator was speaking to JoyNews’ Stephen Mensah during the Second Extraordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament in Accra.

He called for common regional laws that member states could domesticate and enforce nationally, particularly in areas involving forest protection and activities contributing to environmental degradation.

According to him, overgrazing, deforestation and the destruction of forest reserves are worsening the effects of climate-related events, including flooding.

“If forests were not depleted, the effects of climate change would be minimal,” he said.

The Minority Leader said ECOWAS should strengthen regional cooperation to address activities that contribute to the degradation of natural ecosystems.

He argued that protecting forests should form part of a broader regional climate strategy because environmental damage in one country can have consequences beyond national borders.

He therefore wants member states to translate regional agreements into domestic laws and enforcement mechanisms capable of producing measurable results.

His call also extends to disaster preparedness, with the legislator advocating stronger systems to enable countries to respond quickly when floods, mudslides and other climate-related emergencies occur.

He said governments should invest in preparedness before disasters strike rather than waiting to mobilise resources after communities have already suffered losses.

The call comes against the backdrop of discussions within the ECOWAS Parliament on the region’s response to climate change and environmental challenges.

At the parliamentary seminar, Speaker Hadja Mémounatou Ibrahima urged lawmakers to look beyond climate statistics and consider the human consequences of environmental disruption.

The discussions have focused on the need for stronger environmental legislation, climate financing, early-warning systems and measures to build resilience across West African countries.

The Sierra Leonean legislator said the next step should be to translate such discussions into laws, funding commitments and programmes whose implementation can be measured.

He maintained that regional climate action should ultimately be judged by its ability to protect lives, livelihoods and communities from the growing risks associated with environmental degradation and climate-related disasters.