‘Terrorism should not find a physical, economic and moral fertile ground’
The PSC Report spoke to former ambassador Ahmedou Ould Abdallah from Mauritania about the security threat in the Sahel region.
Ambassador Ahmedou Ould Abdallah, president of the Centre for Strategy and Security in the Sahel Sahara, former United Nations (UN) Representative for West Africa in Somalia and Burundi and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mauritania, spoke to the PSC Report about the security threat in the Sahel region and what can be expected going forward.
What are the major challenges facing the Sahel-Sahara region?
The Sahel-Sahara region is an area I love and know well because this is where I come from. I also served in the region, first as a Mauritanian official, then as a UN Special Representative from 2002 to 2007, and finally now by conducting research and reflecting on the situation.
The challenges of this region – which sits at the juncture of the Maghreb and sub-Saharan Africa – are many and some are specific to the region. Beyond the neglected issue of the environment, I can mention three challenges.
Currently, the major problem that has been making headlines since 2011 is the security challenge. For many reasons – the effects of contagion and imitation, but also very often bad governance – violent terrorism is increasingly part of the political landscape, of the image of this region that deserves better than to be perceived as a zone of insecurity.
Violent terrorism is increasingly part of the political landscape of this region that deserves better than to be perceived as a zone of insecurity
It is a phenomenon that is now present in the Sahel after having been particularly prevalent in some countries of the Maghreb. Today, it covers almost the entire Sahelian band, from east to west and from north to south. What is more, according to the analyses that we have and the observations made by some knowledgeable people, terrorism is heading to – not to say that it is already raging in – the perimeter of the Gulf of Guinea, which is the entire Atlantic coast of West Africa and the Sahel.
The security challenge has a very high cost for governments. It depletes their revenues and increases their non-productive expenditures. This represents a significant shortfall, especially in tourism, which was a source of income and opened up several regions in the northern parts of beautiful countries such as Chad, Niger, Mali, a part of eastern Mauritania, and southern Algeria.
In addition to the security challenge, there is another one that I identified in 2006 with my UN colleagues in our Dakar office. This is the challenge of youth unemployment. At the time, we asked ourselves how one could ensure a better future for young people who are increasingly connected and less attached to ethnic categorisations. How, beyond creating jobs, can we truly prepare a credible future for those young people? This challenge still persists today and represents a threat to national cohesion in several countries.
We asked ourselves how one could ensure a better future for young people who are increasingly connected
A third challenge that I looked at and that I still consider worrying is that of rapid urbanisation. Even if rapid urbanisation can be an advantage because it invites and encourages national cohesion, diversity and exchanges between citizens of the same country coming from different regions, ethnic groups and sensitivities, our big cities are also severely affected by the difficult problems of communication, transport, unemployment and insecurity, which characterise major urban areas.
It is also important to remember that the region, beyond desertification and recurrent droughts, faces enormous environmental challenges that are often related to those of the city, namely the issues of urbanisation and public sanitation. In some countries, the Atlantic coast has a high population density and has become very vulnerable. Towns and populations are under threat.
In some countries, the Atlantic coast has a high population density and has become very vulnerable
In sum, the region faces several challenges: insecurity, youth unemployment and environment. National governments have to increase efforts to deal with their vulnerabilities. Terrorism should not find a physical, economic and moral fertile ground in affected countries. Although terrorism exists the world over, its effects may be more destructive and enduring in the Sahel.
How do governments of the region, and by extension subregional organisations or mechanisms, address the issues you mention above? What, in your opinion, are the possible solutions to these challenges?
It is not right to blame current governments for the insecurity that is taking root in the region. Having said that, the problems of a growing youth population without avenues and rapid urbanisation do not appear to be systematically treated, as they should be. The first Africa–Europe Summit, which had as a theme youth unemployment, was held in November 2018 in Abidjan. Today, there should be a follow-up to this meeting. Youth unemployment and urbanisation are still matters of urgent and great concern.
With regard to terrorism and violent extremism, each country has its own methods of managing the threat. However, given the proximity, at least geographically, of terrorists to populations, and given that terrorism itself is regional or even universal, it is necessary, in the absence of a magical solution, to take an approach that addresses its root causes, as well as the factors that promote their sustainability and unhindered regional expansion.
Even democratically elected governments need to open up to civil society and especially to their political oppositions
In terms of solutions, an effort has to be made to strengthen the national unity of affected countries. Politically, we need to broaden the base of governments, i.e. have more inclusive governments. Even democratically elected governments need to open up to civil society and especially to their political oppositions. In a period of crisis, it is in fact important to garner all efforts and to put all energies together. This can take the form of national unity governments, or coalition governments, similar to the alliances that terrorist groups create among themselves! It is absolutely necessary to change governance structures and methods.
Additionally, the military in the Sahel region is composed of elements that are known to be heroic and strongly resilient in a difficult environment of hunger and thirst. They are very courageous soldiers. If today they do not manage to successfully combat the terrorists, it is firstly because the enemy is elusive, but there is also a fundamental problem: that of the management of national resources, including those allocated to the armed forces.
This management must be made more transparent. Recruitment must be more open. Budgets, including soldiers’ salaries and pensions, must be computerised. In an era of generalised digitalisation, the notion of ‘secret defence’ (state secrets or classified information) becomes more and more difficult to justify. This ‘secret defence’ opens the door to suspicion and accusations of all kinds of corruption, and negatively affects the morale of troops.
Therefore, what are potential solutions? Strengthening national unity and social cohesion, professionalising the military and ensuring transparency in its management, as well as better relationships with foreign partners.
All parties – governments of the Sahel and external partners – have to play fair
In this regard, all parties – governments of the Sahel and external partners – have to play fair. One cannot seek an international presence, be it bilateral or multilateral, and at the same time mobilise local populations against those partners that allegedly ‘are perpetuating war’!
How do you evaluate, so far, the impact of initiatives such as the G5 Sahel and the Multi-National Joint Task Force against Boko Haram? What has been the real added value of these initiatives?
I sincerely believe that, without external intervention by France in Mali in 2013, the situation in that country would have been very different to what it is at present. Today, what is important not to ignore is the severity of the security crisis. Now firmly implanted in the region, this crisis is affecting and endangering national and regional economies and threatening the cohesion of affected states. This can be seen now with the continuation of inter-ethnic violence, sometimes not linked to terrorists. They feed on the insecurity created by terrorists.
This crisis is affecting and endangering national and regional economies and threatening the cohesion of affected states
It is now seven years that the crisis in the Sahel persists. It is, without a doubt, time for the governments of the Sahel and their partners to take stock of the situation. The conclusion might be to end the insecurity, not with speeches but by increasing the means to successfully respond to adversaries that are determined but not invincible.
Regarding the G5 Sahel, I believe that an institution is good when it is accepted and supported by those who establish it, its member states. The legitimacy of the G5 Sahel is not called into question. The countries that set up the G5 Sahel must continue to support and legitimise organisations among their populations and their external partners.
The G5 Sahel secretariat is made up of capable people who are dedicated to successfully carrying out the mission entrusted to them. Now it is necessary to provide the G5 Sahel with the resources to do its work and to consider the organisation as an institution not destined to play a prestigious role but meant to accomplish the noble mission of bringing about peace and stability in the region.
Naturally, dealing with security issues requires enormous resources
In recent months the question of financial resources has come to the forefront. This is normal and important for the operationalisation of any new institution. Naturally, dealing with security issues requires enormous resources. Our governments do not have these resources and partners have their financial constraints and their regulations that are oftentimes too rigorous for the management of crisis situations.
One should add that we do face a problem of method or strategy. Today, there are about 30 000 soldiers in the Sahel region to combat terrorism. This includes about 14 000 UN soldiers, 4 000 to 4 500 French soldiers and more than 1 000 soldiers from other foreign countries. In addition, there are thousands of national troops from the countries of the G5 Sahel.
All those 30 000 soldiers are on the ground to fight less than 1 000 Islamist and other rebel fighters. In the end, the success of the fight in the Sahel must be found in how the response is organised. And as stated earlier, the use of force must come essentially to support political solutions.
Finally, the resolution of the crisis will require strengthening national cohesion and opening up the space to political parties and civil societies, including the business community, as well as ensuring more transparent elections and more justice in the management of public and private business. In summary, avoid blatant conflicts of interest that feed terrorism!
