First Independent Mena Newspaper
The US Agency for International Development aid (USAID) and the African Development Bank (AFDB) signed a $600 million deal to promote social and economic development projects in the Sahel. The co-financing agreement will be used to support good governance, resilient agriculture, private sector development, water security, sanitation, and health systems. The agreement “reflects a joint […]
Sahel Nations demand UN action on alleged Ukrainian interference In a bold diplomatic move, three West African nations have called upon the United Nations Security Council to address what they claim is Ukraine’s support for terrorism in the Sahel region. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have united in their demand for international intervention to prevent […]
Germany’s top diplomat has talked up the prospect of closer political ties with Senegal and the Ivory Coast, two of the last democracies in a region otherwise plagued by sectarian conflict, in the latest attempt by a senior EU politician to rebuild the bloc’s political influence in West Africa. Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is […]
The “pervasive threats” of terrorism and organized crime are spilling over from the conflict-stricken Sahel to more stable coastal areas in West Africa, a UN envoy said. Terrorist groups sprouting from the Algerian civil war legacy found safe haven in the vast desert swathes of the Sahel where they acted in connivance with trafficking groups […]
With the United States in the process of withdrawing its 1,000 troops from Niger and also about 75 from neighboring Chad, Western military officials and experts are concerned that violent extremist groups are growing in size and influence across Africa, posing a threat to the US and Western allies. A recent UN Security Council “Arria-formula” […]
For every step forward Morocco makes to foster ties with the Sahel, Algeria makes a step backwards, says an analysis published by the Washington-based Wilson Center. Morocco has, even before returning to the African Union, built a strong win-win basis for its ties with Sahel countries through a multipronged strategy that combines soft-power with investments […]
The United States military commander is making a rare trip to Africa for talks on maintaining some of his troops’ presence in West Africa, after US troops were forced to withdraw from Niger and Chad and the Sahel countries’ shift to Russia for security. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General CQ Brown arrived […]
Nigeria should brace for tough times ahead in the fight against terrorism as armed groups relocate from northern Benin to its north, a report warned. Armed extremists are increasingly settling in Kainji Lake National Park, one of Nigeria’s largest, where other armed groups have also gained access, the Clingendael Institute think tank said in a […]
The UN refugee agency UNHCR urged concrete actions to avert forced displacement in the war-ravaged Sahel, warning of a deteriorating humanitarian crisis. Nearly 3.3 million people were forced to flee their homes in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger due to increasing terrorist activity, exacerbated by drought, the UNHCR said in a statement. “The security situation […]
The recently endorsed EU’s Pact on Migration and Asylum “is going to run into political and possibly also legal challenges and a largely hostile international setting,” says a new study by the Elcano Royal Institute, while especially left-wing organizations denounce it as “the result of a deliberate EU policy aimed at creating a deterrent effect […]