According to official figures, 71 soldiers were killed during a terrorist attack on a military base located in Inates, in the Tillaberi region of Niger near the Malian border on 11 December 2019. Twelve soldiers were wounded and 30 are missing. This is the deadliest attack on security forces in Niger’s history. The government declared three days of national mourning. The Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), originally a branch of Boko Haram in Nigeria, claimed responsibility for the attack. Demonstrating their solidarity, G5 Sahel leaders gathered at an extra-ordinary summit in Niamey on 15 December 2019 to pay homage to the soldiers who were killed. They called for closer co-operation and more international support in the fight against the Islamist threat. Read on

Special envoys for the Sahel and their partners met on 17-18 October 2019 at the Casa África in Las Palmas, Spain. Traditionally an informal meeting bringing together representatives from various partner countries and regional/international organisations, the event opened up to researchers and Sahel experts. They shared their analysis and insights on three major topics: security and stability, economic development and women’s contributions to peace and stability. Read on

Alain Antil, a researcher from the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), provides an interesting analysis of the root causes of insecurity in Sahelian countries. While the areas affected by violence in the Sahel continue to expand, socio-economic and demographic trends further exacerbate existing fragilities, especially in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. “Far from being able to deliver basic services or even the most rudimentary infrastructure, the states no longer even fulfil their sovereign functions: security, justice... Other actors have taken over and exercise a sort of shared governance,” Antil explains. Read on

The most recent West African Paper, prepared by Daniel Eizenga, research fellow of the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, offers a broad overview of the current security-development situation in the Sahel. It analyses three central themes - poverty, migration and conflict - adopting a historical perspective to examine long-term trends in the region. The paper includes an analysis of the costs of security-based solutions. The author recommends paying continued attention to the political and economic ramifications. Read on