Security challenges in West Africa - Security Council Briefing (8 July 21)

Briefing by Annadif Khatir Mahamat Saleh, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) on the situation in West Africa, during the Security Council, 8814th meeting.

The Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Mahamat Saleh Annadif, said security challenges created by “terrorist acts in Liptako-Gourma and in the Lake Chad Basin as well as by crime along the coasts of the Gulf of Guinea must be addressed from a regional perspective because the risks of a joining between the threats from the sea and from the Sahel are real, and the main victims are the civilian populations.”

Addressing the Security Council via teleconference today (08 Jul), Annadif said the Accra Initiative, which brings together Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana and Togo, is a “laudable example of anticipating this kind of regional approach.”

The UNOWAS chief told the Council that he has been on a regional tour since taking office some two months ago, during which he met with most of the heads of state of ECOWAS member countries, as well as a range national interlocutors and international partners. He said all interlocutors reaffirmed their continued commitment to work in close collaboration with his Office.

Annadif said the challenges in the region related to electoral processes are “mainly the consequence of a lack of political dialogue and above all the lack of consensus on the fundamental principles of the different types of elections.” He said UNOWAS was making efforts , in coordination with the ECOWAS Commission, to improve exchanges between ministers of justice, judicial cooperation and the sharing of experiences between the main actors who should promote the rule of law in the region.

Annadif noted that the UN System is fully mobilized to ensure that development aid efficiently reaches the people of the Sahel through inclusive, sustainable, and people-centred responses. He added that, considering the importance and urgency of addressing climate insecurity, UNOWAS together with some UN Agencies, launched a UN regional working group on climate change, security, environment, and development. With the objective to promote UN synergy and a harmonized approach to working with ECOWAS, He said the working group would contribute to the linkage of local efforts with national and regional policy development.

Turning to the issue of COVID-19, The UNOWAS chief noted that the whole of West Africa and the Sahel have resisted the pandemic rather well, thanks to concerted efforts at the national and regional levels.