Overcoming crises together: Strong partnerships for people in the Sahel region
Stability in the Sahel affects not only the region itself but also Germany and Europe. Through the Sahel Resilience Partnership, we are creating better prospects for millions of people.
Making people more resilient to crises is a key objective for the countries in the Sahel region. The region is under pressure on a number of fronts, from climate change and resource scarcity to weak social services and conflicts that are driving people into poverty and hunger. Displacement caused by fragile security situations in neighbouring regions exacerbates the situation in the host communities. These complex global challenges demand integrated solutions.
On behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), we support the local population in Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, the Niger and Chad in securing food supplies, reducing conflict and strengthening education and health. To this end, we are working successfully with the World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). We prevented malnutrition for 3.6 million people and around one million people now have safe access to water and food.
Progress through strong partnerships
By working together with partners, we can combine our strengths and complement each other to create better opportunities for those most in need. Take the village of Kogga in the Niger, for example, where the WFP provided healthy school meals in the village with the help of locally grown wild plants, while UNICEF helped to improve the local water supply and build a new health centre. At the same time, we promoted climate-resilient agriculture, trained farmers in the sustainable use of natural resources and helped households strengthen their livelihoods. One of the households belongs to Maria Laouli. She received goats and was provided training so that she could make cheese from their milk and sell it – which has since become a vital source of income for her family. ‘Thanks to the support, I can meet my children’s basic needs, produce my own goat’s milk, buy food and school materials and soap for hygiene,’ she says.
Joint solutions for a better future
This is not just a promising approach, it works: in Maria Laouli's community alone, more than 2,500 people now have better prospects. Across the Niger, 80% of the villages where we were active are no longer dependent on humanitarian aid, even outside the harvesting season. This shows that when we support people like Maria Laouli, we prevent the spread of poverty and violence and thus create stable living conditions – not just in the Sahel, but far beyond.
