Sahel

A 5,000 kilometre belt of land below the Sahara Desert, the Sahel stretches from Africa’s Atlantic coast to the Red Sea.

Photo: UNDP/Freya Morales

It includes four countries bordering Lake Chad - Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria – as well as Burkina Faso, The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal.

Development challenges in the region are numerous but so are the opportunities.

Photo: UNDP Chad/Aurélia Rusek

Humanitarian solutions cannot be an adequate substitute for sustainable response to development deficits or governance shortcomings. But they remain a critical imperative.

Photo: UNDP Chad/Jean Damascene Hakuzimana

The main threat is climate change. By 2080, average temperatures in the Sahel are expected to rise by 2.0°C to 4.3°C relative to the year 1876, depending on future greenhouse gas emissions.

By 2050, more than 85 million sub-Saharan Africans are expected to be forced to migrate.

Photo: UNDP Chad/Aurélia Rusek Source: World Bank

The Boko Haram insurgency in the Lake Chad Basin region is another threat to families.

Photo: UNDP RSCA/Malin Fezehai

Across the region, some 9.3 million people are displaced, and millions more are unable to find work.

“Our focus is on tackling the drivers and root causes that lead people to leave their home countries. These include poverty, inequality, climate change, conflict and poor governance.”

Photo: UNDP Chad/Aurélia Rusek - Achim Steiner

To achieve this, UNDP plays an important role in the joint humanitarian and development response.

Photo: UNDP Nigeria/Bridget Jangfa

Cross border cooperation is one of the main facets of our stabilization work.

At the crossroads of Chad and Cameroon, or between Mauritania and Mali, residents from both sides engage in dialogue.

Photo: UNDP Chad/Aurélia Rusek

Women organize to discuss and raise awareness of violent extremism and they involve local leaders in their efforts.

Photo: UNDP/Lesley Wright

These complex challenges often overshadow the Sahel's enormous potential.

Photo: UNDP Nigeria Source: United Nations Support Plan for the Sahel

Its population grows at about 3 percent per year and is expected to reach 340 million in 2050.

Photo: UNDP RSCA/Malin Fezehai

The Sahel is one of the youngest regions in the world, with about 64 percent of its population under the age of 25

Photo: UNDP/Freya Morales

These millions of young people can bring about change, provided they have the right tools and resources.

It is estimated that a one percent increase in the working age population increases real GDP growth per capita by 0.5 percent.

Source: Drummond et al 2014, IMF

“We need to invest in the potential of young people, their talent, energy and enthusiasm and create the opportunity for them to fully realize their dreams”

Photo: UNHCR Niger/Louise Donovan – Ahunna Eziakonwa, Director of UNDP’s Africa regional bureau.

That's why a Great Green Wall is being planted to restore 100 million hectares of land, trap 250 million tonnes of carbon and create 10 million jobs...

Photo: UNDP/Imen Meliane Source: Great Green Wall

...because trees help grow food, create green jobs and give young people a reason to stay.

Video: United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

The region's vast potential for renewable energy is also largely untapped. Only 49 percent of people have access to electricity.

Photo: UNDP/Imen Meliane Source: World Bank; 2014

That means 51 percent – 175 million people – can vastly improve their lives with a reliable source of energy.

Photo: UNDP/Freya Morales Source: UNDP Africa report on renewable energy

Solar and wind power can also improve food security, helping families store and process food.

Photo: UNDP/Imen Meliane Source: 2018 Africa Sustainable Development Report

Across the 10 countries, UNDP helps stabilize, transform, and sustain for a prosperous Sahel.

Photo: UN/Marco Dormimo

Share this story and follow the conversation on social media: #ThrivingSahel

Photo: UNDP/Freya Morales

Sahel

A region of opportunities

A 5,000 kilometre belt of land below the Sahara Desert, the Sahel stretches from Africa’s Atlantic coast to the Red Sea.

It includes four countries bordering Lake Chad - Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria – as well as Burkina Faso, The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, and Senegal.

Development challenges in the region are numerous but so are the opportunities.

Humanitarian solutions cannot be an adequate substitute for sustainable response to development deficits or governance shortcomings. But they remain a critical imperative.

– Abdoulaye Mar Dieye, UN Special Coordinator for Development in the Sahel

The main threat is climate change. By 2080, average temperatures in the Sahel are expected to rise by 2.0°C to 4.3°C relative to the year 1876, depending on future greenhouse gas emissions.

Photo: UNDP/Freya Morales

By 2050, more than 85 million sub-Saharan Africans are expected to be forced to migrate.

The Boko Haram insurgency in the Lake Chad Basin region is another threat to families.

Across the region, some 9.3 million people are displaced, and millions more are unable to find work.

“Our focus is on tackling the drivers and root causes that lead people to leave their home countries. These include poverty, inequality, climate change, conflict and poor governance.”

To achieve this, UNDP plays an important role in the joint humanitarian and development response.

Cross border cooperation is one of the main facets of our stabilization work.

At the crossroads of Chad and Cameroon, or between Mauritania and Mali, residents from both sides engage in dialogue.

Women organize to discuss and raise awareness of violent extremism and they involve local leaders in their efforts.

These complex challenges often overshadow the Sahel's enormous potential.

Its population grows at about 3 percent per year and is expected to reach 340 million in 2050.

The Sahel is one of the youngest regions in the world, with about 64 percent of its population under the age of 25

These millions of young people can bring about change, provided they have the right tools and resources.

Photo: UNDP/Freya Morales

It is estimated that a one percent increase in the working age population increases real GDP growth per capita by 0.5 percent.

“We need to invest in the potential of young people, their talent, energy and enthusiasm and create the opportunity for them to fully realize their dreams”

That's why a Great Green Wall is being planted to restore 100 million hectares of land, trap 250 million tonnes of carbon and create 10 million jobs...

...because trees help grow food, create green jobs and give young people a reason to stay.

The region's vast potential for renewable energy is also largely untapped. Only 49 percent of people have access to electricity.

That means 51 percent – 175 million people – can vastly improve their lives with a reliable source of energy.

Solar and wind power can also improve food security, helping families store and process food.

Across the 10 countries, UNDP helps stabilize, transform, and sustain for a prosperous Sahel.

Share this story and follow the conversation on social media: #ThrivingSahel

Partners: Canada, European Union, France, Germany, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Sweden; Alliance Sahel, FAO, Peacebuilding Fund, UNOCHA, UN Women, UNICEF