West African leaders attending a regional summit agreed Sunday to lift sanctions on Mali and Burkina Faso, two neighbors led by military governments.

Speaking in Accra, Jean-Claude Kassi Brou – Ecowas Commission President – said the head of states had reached an agreement with Bamako, which has promised a return to democratic rule.

If the 15-nation regional bloc maintained Mali’s suspension from Ecowas bodies, the West African presidents lifted the 6-month long embargo imposed on Mali. In addition to that, the presidents also decided “that the sanctions taken in terms of recalling the ambassadors of ECOWAS member country” would be “removed, so the ambassadors will be able to return to Bamako”, Jean-Claude Kassi Brou said.

Brou said Ecowas would continue to monitor the situation and also maintain Mali’s suspension from the bloc for now.

The decision to lift the sanctions, however, stipulates that no junta member can run as a candidate in Mali’s future presidential election.

In January, Ecowas imposed a trade and financial embargo on Mali after its military government unveiled a scheme to rule for five years.

The sanctions against Bamako have has a severe impact on a country whose economy is already under extreme pressure from a decade-long jihadist insurgency.

Following months of talks, the Malian authorities approved on Wednesday a plan to hold presidential elections in February 2024.

The vote will be preceded by a referendum on a revised constitution in March 2023 and legislative elections in late 2023.

Ecowas mediator – former Nigerian leader Goodluck Jonathan – visited the country last week and reportedly made “enormous progress” while dealing with the military leadership.

Meanwhile, Burkina Faso and Guinea have so far only been suspended from the 15-nation Ecowas.

Burkina’s junta has proposed a constitutional referendum in December 2024 and legislative and presidential elections in February 2025.

The regional heads of state have reportedly agreed to the two-year transition timeline.

Visiting Ouagadougou for the second time in a month on Saturday, Ecowas mediator Mahamadou Issoufou had praised junta leader Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba and his government for their “openness to dialogue”.

According to the former president of Niger, the timetable for a return to civilian rule and the situation of deposed leader Roch Marc Christian Kaboré were also discussed.

Political parties allied to Kaboré denounced the junta’s plans on Friday, saying they had not been consulted in advance.