This SWAC/OECD study maps the evolution of violence across North and West Africa, with a particular focus on Mali, Lake Chad and Libya. The work is based on a new spatial indicator of political violence designed to assess the long-term evolution of conflicts and provide policy options. It calls upon the region’s states and the international community to promote regional initiatives to restore state legitimacy, increase investment in border regions and better protect civilians. Read on

Niger held its first marathon under the slogan “Running for peace in the Sahel”. The “Grand Marathon du Ténéré” took place on 29 December 2019 around the city of Agadez in northern Niger. It aimed to help put a stop to the isolation of this troubled region. Read on

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

At the initiative of Germany, UNDP and the Liptako-Gourma Authority, members of the Sahel Alliance gathered on 20-22 November 2019 in Niamey, Niger for a regional workshop on the theme, “Governance and decentralisation: Vectors of peace and stability in the Sahel.” Some 30 participants coming from various administrative levels (local, regional, national) from Sahelian countries as well as international development partners discussed current decentralisation trends, problems and perspectives. Local government representatives from the three countries of the Liptako-Gourma region (Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger) issued a communiqué in which they urged members and partners of the Sahel Alliance to stronger involve them. Read on