The birth of West African integration organizations such as the West African Economic Community ( CEAO ) , Economic Community of West African States ( ECOWAS ) ; the environmental protection organization established in response to the severe drought of the 1970s , Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel ( CILSS ) Upper Volta-Mali border dispute issues Sessions of the Council of Ministers and summits of the Organization of African Unity ( OAU ) As Director of the Department of International Cooperation