Soldiers alone won’t solve militancy in the Sahel

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Mali’s army has announced it is withdrawing from isolated positions near the border with Niger and Burkina Faso. This follows two devastating attacks by militant groups in the last month, leaving at least 70 people dead, including dozens of soldiers.

The move is symbolic of failing efforts to counter the growing threat of Islamist militancy in West Africa’s Sahel region.

This includes thousands of French troops under operation Berkhane, and anti-insurgent effort launched in 2014, spanning the G5 Sahel countries – Mali, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger and Chad – and the UN-backed G5 Sahel task force. In September members of the Economic Community of West African States pledged $1 billion from 2020 to 2024 to support military operations in the region.

None of this has deterred militant groups.

According to the US State Department recorded attacks in the region have doubled in the last year, amid fears about a spillover into coastal economies like Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigeria.

The need for a military response is clear, but any long-term solution must address the broader issues of chronic underdevelopment, compounded by climate change, and weak states.

This won’t come as news to the G5 Sahel countries and their international partners, who regularly stress the need to improve governance and development in the region.

Without meaningful progress on this front, no number of soldiers will do the trick.

This report reflects the views of the author alone, not those of How we made it in Africa.


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