The NBA and the ECOWAS Court have called for tougher and more effective enforcement of court judgments.

The President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Afam Osigwe (SAN), on Monday received the President of the Court of the Economic Community of West African States, Justice Ricardo Gonçalves, at the NBA National Secretariat in Abuja, where both leaders raised concerns over the poor enforcement of court judgments in the West African sub-region.

Justice Gonçalves was accompanied by other judges and senior registry officials for the meeting, which centred on ways to improve compliance with ECOWAS Court rulings by member states.

Osigwe stressed that the authority of the judiciary goes beyond delivering judgments and depends largely on the assurance that such decisions will be respected and implemented.

He warned that when court rulings are repeatedly ignored, the integrity of the justice system is undermined, noting that enforcement remains the backbone of effective adjudication. According to him, even the most carefully reasoned judgments lose their value if they are not enforced.

He also assured the regional court of the NBA’s willingness to work closely with it to develop strategies that would strengthen compliance and reinforce respect for its decisions.

In his remarks, Justice Gonçalves described enforcement as a critical institutional challenge, cautioning that weak implementation mechanisms could gradually weaken public trust in regional judicial bodies.

He called for stronger cooperation among the judiciary, the legal profession, the executive arm of government, and civil society to ensure timely execution of ECOWAS Court judgments, saying this was vital to preserving the court’s credibility and authority across the sub-region.

Both the NBA and the ECOWAS Court expressed confidence that continued engagement and coordinated efforts would improve compliance and help protect the court’s standing in West Africa.