Editorial – July 2023
Dear members, dear partners,
The fourth General Assembly of the Sahel Alliance opened under the patronage of HE Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani, President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, and closed in Nouakchott on July 10, 2023.
It received strong political support, as demonstrated by the high-level participation of our partners and members. 33 heads of delegation and almost 120 participants attended the in-person meeting, chaired by Spain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares.
This meeting was an opportunity to deepen our shared understanding of the interactions between security, climate and development, and to listen to the expectations of our Sahelian partners in the wake of the adoption by the G5 Sahel Council of Ministers of the revised development and security strategy and its associated priority investment program.
Recognising the importance of the G5 Sahel-Sahel Alliance strategic partnership, the need to respond to the priorities identified by our Sahelian partners according to a selective and transformational agenda, and the importance of addressing the root causes of fragility to limit the spread of Sahelian crises to coastal countries, Alliance members agreed to:
- Support regional integration and solidarity to meet the challenges facing the region.
- Strengthen and coordinate support to meet the urgent needs of Sahelian populations on the basis of clearly defined reciprocal commitments
- Increase their collective commitment and our impact on three strategic priorities:
– the creation of employment and income opportunities through education, training, skills development and entrepreneurship
– resilience to shocks, in particular related to the effects of climate change
– territorial development and access to basic services. - Strengthen the effectiveness and impact of the Sahel Alliance as a platform for coordination and dialogue by implementing the recommendations of the independent review of the Sahel Alliance.
- Pursue our efforts to ensure that populations living in fragile peripheral zones, particularly exposed to the spread of violent extremism, have access to essential services and decent economic and employment opportunities.
In this newsletter dedicated to the 4th Annual General Meeting, you will find the adopted Declaration and the official statements.
I invite you to listen to Ms Svenja Schulze statement, Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development of the Federal Republic of Germany and new President of the General Assembly, who sets out her vision for tangible, sustainable improvements in the living conditions of the people of the Sahel, as well as the Alliance’s priorities, which will guide our joint action over the coming months.
I wish you a pleasant reading,
Emmanuel Debroise
Coordinator
Sahel Alliance Coordination Unit
Newsletter content
- A look back at the 4th General Assembly of the Sahel Alliance
- Joint statement of the Sahel Alliance members
- Speech by H.E. José Manuel Albares, Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation (Spain)
- Speech by Ousmane Diagana, Vice-President of the World Bank Group for West Africa (video)
- Emergency Development Programme: Update on the commitment of Sahel Alliance members
