The Beating Famine Sahel Conference, held from 26-28 February in Bamako, Mali, focused on farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) and other successful land restoration initiatives in the Sahel. It is estimated that FMNR has spread to 21-million hectares in the West African Sahel, making the region a world leader of the land restoration movement. The conference participants adopted a declaration to rally support to restore 100-million hectares of degraded land within the African Forest Landscapes Restoration Initiative (AFR100). Read on

The economic outlook of West Africa is promising. Six West African countries [Côte d’Ivoire (3), Senegal (5), Burkina Faso (6), Ghana (8), Benin (9) and Guinea(10)] ranked in the top 10 in Africa in 2018 in terms of real GDP growth. The West African economy is projected to grow by 3.6% in 2019, slightly below the continental average of 4%. Read on

Dakar hosted, from 17-19 January, the third edition of the International Conference on the Emergence of Africa (ICEA), which focused on the theme, “Emergence, private sector and inclusiveness.” Organised by the Government of Senegal in collaboration with the African Development Bank, UNDP and the World Bank, the meeting brought together some 1000 African leaders, high-level personalities and experts. The conference shared best practices and took stock of the African countries’ progress towards emergence. Read on

The official celebration ceremony took place on 10 January in the capital city of Burkina Faso at the International Conference Centre of Ouaga 2000. The group welcomed the presence of President Alassane Dramane Ouattara of Côte d’Ivoire, the current chair of the UEMOA’s Heads of State and Governments Conference. In terms of challenges, he highlighted the low rate of intra-community trade; the large number of border controls, delays and illegal imposed levies; the distortion of competition; and difficulties of some companies in gaining access to markets within the union. At the end of the ceremony, the two presidents inaugurated the new UEMOA administrative complex, located in Ouaga 2000. Read on