Didigu was appointed alongside Awa Bah of The Gambia, Charlyne M. Brumskine of Liberia, Désiré Henri Aihou of Benin and Yaouza Ouro-Sama of Togo for the 2026–2030 term. The appointments were approved at the 69th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government held in Lungi, Sierra Leone, on July 19, 2026.
Long Career in ECOWAS Legal Affairs
Didigu’s career within ECOWAS predates her appointment to the Community Court by many years. She has served in several senior positions within the organisation, particularly in its legal and institutional affairs.
Records from ECOWAS and international organisations identify her as a legal adviser and senior legal official at the ECOWAS Commission. In a 2005 United Nations document, she was listed as a representative of ECOWAS and a legal adviser in the organisation’s Legal Department.
By 2008, she was identified as a Legal Adviser/Acting Director in ECOWAS’s Humanitarian and Social Affairs structure, demonstrating that her responsibilities extended beyond conventional legal advisory work into policy and institutional programmes.
An ECOWAS document from 2011 also listed Didigu as Acting Director of Legal Affairs at the Commission. Her work included advising on issues connected with ECOWAS laws and policies. In 2012, while serving as Acting Director of Legal Affairs, she represented ECOWAS at discussions on the proposed international Arms Trade Treaty at the United Nations. She argued for rules that would take account of the humanitarian and security consequences of arms transfers, particularly in regions affected by instability and armed violence.
Maiden Head of ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority
In 2019, Didigu became the first Executive Director of the ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority (ERCA). ERCA was created to implement the region’s competition rules and help regulate anti-competitive conduct affecting regional trade and investment.
At the launch of the authority in Banjul, Didigu said competition law was important to economic prosperity and regional integration, arguing that ECOWAS’s adoption of a regional competition framework demonstrated its commitment to promoting economic growth.
She has also served as Acting Director of the Department of Humanitarian and Social Affairs, while a United Nations document subsequently listed her as Director of the Department for Human Development and Gender at the ECOWAS Commission.
She was also involved in the development of ECOWAS’s gender policy as she was among those whose contributions supported the organisation’s work on gender mainstreaming and institutional development.
Joining the ECOWAS Court
Didigu’s appointment to the Community Court of Justice represents a return to the judicial and legal side of the regional institution after years in senior administrative and policy roles.
She now joins the five-member Community Court for the 2026–2030 term as Nigeria’s representative, bringing with her long experience of the legal architecture and institutional machinery of West Africa’s principal regional organisation.
The new judges were selected under a revised framework governing the Community Court. The applicable rules provide for a five-member court composed of independent judges from ECOWAS member states. Candidates must meet qualifications comparable to those required for senior judicial office or have recognised expertise in international, community or regional integration law, as well as at least 20 years of professional experience.
The Court is responsible for interpreting and applying ECOWAS community law and plays an important role in resolving disputes and addressing human-rights claims within the regional legal framework.
