Independent High Level Commission on Security and Development in Crisis Sahel Region Launched at UN |
The independent panel was officially announced Saturday in New York on the sidelines of the General Assembly’s annual debate during the High-Level Event in the Sahel, held under the auspices of the United Nations, the Commission. African Union (AU), Economic Community. of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Group of Five for the Sahel (G5 Sahel).
The Sahel extends across Africa from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Indian Ocean in the east and runs through parts of Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Sudan.
While the United Nations Office of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), has said that the Sahel faces “the worst humanitarian need in years requiring an urgent scale of emergency response”, the Secretary-General warning just last week Increased insecurity, including the rise of terrorism and armed groups outside the State, coupled with political instability, is creating a crisis in the Sahel, posing a “global threat” .
“The crisis is compounded by climate change…” and if nothing is done, the effects of terrorism, violent extremism and organized crime will extend far beyond the region, he said. and the African continent”.
UN photo / Rick Bajornas
Secretary General António Guterres (right) meets with Mahamadou Issoufou, Chairman of the Independent High Commission on Security, Governance and Development in the Sahel.
In their statement on Saturday, the Chairman of the AU Commission, the Chairman of the ECOWAS Committee, the Executive Secretary of the G5 Sahel [a joint force established in 2017 to respond to the expansion of armed and violent extremist groups and deteriorating security in the region]and Mr. Guterres officially launched the Independent High Commission on Security and Development in the Sahel, headed by former Niger President Mahamadou Issoufou.
They highlight fundamental challenges in the Sahel, including the rise of violent extremism, the growing fragility of the region’s economies from the impacts of climate change and COVID-19 pandemics, as well as complex political transitions.
They call for coordinated international, regional and local efforts in the Sahel and in the wider region to address today’s security, governance and development challenges, while adopting best practices. people-centered security approach based on overarching political strategies.
Participants also called on the international community to scale up to meet regional needs, including providing much-needed technical, financial, material and logistical support;
They reaffirmed the four organizations’ support for the work of the Independent High Panel and look forward to the results of the Independent Strategic Review to be presented during the 36th Regular Session of the Panel. Council of Heads of State and Government of the African Union is held. Released in February 2023.
