Publications

This report outlines the substance of discussions on the multidimensional crisis that has been unfolding in the Sahel region for just over a decade, held in the framework of a conference organised by the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Peace and Security Centre of Competence Sub-Saharan Africa (FES PSCC), in Dakar, Senegal, from 14 to 15 May 2024.

For some years now, the Sahel has been experiencing a series of interlinked crises, and the re-articulation of its geopolitical and security realities. The change in the historical logic that prevailed until recently has paved the way for the return of certain players (including Russia, which is making a major comeback) and the arrival of new ones (Türkiye, and Iran to a certain extent).

The decision by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger to withdraw from ECOWAS represents a major strategic shift in this decade. The creation of the Alliance of Sahel States already brought with it a new configuration in West Africa following the decline of the G5 Sahel.

The idea of placing people rather than states at the centre of peace support operations, and prioritising human security during military interventions has been circulating in policy circles for some time. However, some members of the international peace support community are reluctant to embrace it. Despite the pushback against this notion as a policy and a practice, it has become vital for the relevance and credibility of international peace support operations (IPSOs) in Africa. According to the international peace support community, IPSOs, including various types of International Peace and Training Missions, are among the most effective tools for supporting peace and security. In recent years, however, IPSOs have suffered significant setbacks. They include reistance from host countries, perceived ineffectiveness in responding to asymmetrical conflict threats and preventing violence…

The main aim of this study is to analyse the advantages and opportunities of a gender-inclusive security sector in order to gain a better understanding of the challenges involved in taking this dimension into account, with a view to promoting greater involvement and integration of women's needs in security sector reform in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. It also looks at the nature of the progress made in terms of women's participation in the security sector in these countries and the institutional responses to the specific security needs of this category of actors.

From 29 to 30 November 2023, the Peace and Security Competence Center Sub-Saharan Africa office organized a regional workshop on the theme: "Crisis in West Africa: Challenges and Opportunities on the Road to a New Model for Democracy and Regional Cooperation." The workshop was attended by fifteen university participants, researchers, civil society actors and experts, specialists in questions of democracy, governance, constitutionalists and specialists in electoral, institutional and security issues from Mali, Burkina, Niger, Senegal, Benin, Guinea and Côte d’Ivoire.

From 21^st to 22^nd June 2023, the fourth edition of the West Africa Dialogue regional conference of the FES Peace and Security Competence Centre Sub-Saharan Africa was held in Dakar. The theme was "Nexus of democracy, security, and climate change in West Africa: A plea for inclusive and holistic approaches". The objective of this fourth edition is to make a plea for inclusive and holistic approaches about the topics not only important and urgent but also interconnected, namely democracy, security and climate change in West Africa. This policy paper reviews the outcome of the discussions and the recommendations made.

In a Sahel region beset by major security challenges, Niger seemed to have become the new preferred partner of the Western powers in the fight against violent extremist groups and international organised crime. But the coup d'état perpetrated by the military grouped around the Cadre National pour la Sauvegarde de la Patrie (CNSP) on 26 July 2023 against President Mohamed BAZOUM opened up a new era of uncertainty both in Niger and in the future of the fight against terrorism in the Sahel.

In view of the transnational and hybrid nature of the threats and challenges to security and stability in the Sahel and their rapid regional expansion, the Peace and Security Competence Centre Sub-Saharan Africa of the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES PSCC) Dakar organised the 4th regional conference Sahel-Sahara Dialogue from 20 to 21 March 2023 in Niamey (Niger) on the theme "The Sahel and contemporary geopolitical issues and changes : what prospects for the region? This report summarises the proceedings and the recommendations made.

ECOWAS has set up mechanisms to promote democracy and strengthen collective security within its borders. These mechanisms have produced mixed results since their creation at the end of the civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone. The military coups that have taken place in Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Niger over the last three years have shown the limits of these mechanisms and the need to review them in order to adapt them to the ever changing political, security and geopolitical context in West Africa.