The Government of Denmark, in partnership with the Government of Germany, the European Union and the United Nations, hosted a high-level humanitarian event on the Central Sahel. The high-level event featured a ministerial round table that took place on Tuesday, 20 October 2020, which followed up on a virtual senior officials’ meeting held on 8 September that focused on operational lessons learned and forward-looking plans relating to humanitarian action, development and peace efforts, including special attention to the impact and consequences of COVID-19.
The event was livestreamed via UN Web TV. Click the video below to watch the recorded livestream.
Media Resources
| Facts and Figures [PDF] |
| Background Script [PDF] |
| UNOG Bi-weekly press Briefing: Humanitarian Crisis Central Sahel - shotlist and story |
| Media Photo Album |
| Data and Graphics |
Facts and Figures
Protection impact
A record 13.4 million people need humanitarian assistance across the border areas of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger—the area known as Central Sahel.
In Mali, the number of people who needed humanitarian assistance between January and August 2020 rose from 4.3 million to 6.8 million, meaning one in three people in Mali needs emergency aid.
In Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, the number of reported fatalities has risen sharply over the last year; more than 6,600 people were killed over the last 12 months.
Last year 81 aid workers were wounded, kidnapped or killed in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, according to the Aid Worker Security Database. In 2019 the number of attacks on aid workers in Mali was double the number in 2018.
Human rights violations, including sexual and gender-based violence and attacks against children, have spiked over the past year. For example, Mali recorded 571 grave violations against children during the first three quarters of 2019, compared to 544 in 2018 and 386 in 2017, according to OHCHR.
Humanitarian needs
This year, more than 7 million children in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger need humanitarian assistance, up from 4.3 million children.
An estimated 7.4 million1 people are struggling with crisis or emergency levels of food insecurity during the current lean season. That is three times more acutely food insecure people than one year ago.
Compared to the average of the last five years, acute food insecurity has increased by a staggering 514 per cent in Burkina Faso, 130 per cent in Mali and 144 per cent in Niger. More than 150 health centres in Central Sahel are closed or not fully functioning, leaving millions of people without access to adequate services.
More than 4,000 schools2 are closed because of direct attacks on education infrastructure and personnel. In Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, over 8 million children aged between 6 and 14 are out of school, which represents almost 55 per cent of children in this age group.
Displacement
Between 2018 and 2020 the number of internally displaced people increased more than twentyfold, from 70,000 to almost 1.6 million. In addition, there are currently 122,000 refugees.
In Burkina Faso, armed violence has forced more than 1 million people to flee their homes since the crisis escalated two years ago. This includes 400,000 people who were newly displaced in 2020.
Funding
As of 7 October 2020, the humanitarian response plans for assistance to Central Sahel this year were only 39 per cent funded. A further US$2.4 billion3 is urgently needed to save and protect the lives of the most vulnerable people in the region this year and next.
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1 This figure refers to food insecurity levels in Burkina Faso, Mali and all of Niger. If counting only western Niger, the total figure is 5.5 million people..
2 As of October 2020.
3 $1.4 billion is needed for humanitarian response plans in 2020, of which $550 million has been received. A further estimated $1.56 billion is required to finance humanitarian response plans in 2021. Those plans will be finalized in the coming weeks.
Ministerial Round Table: Responding to Humanitarian Challenges in a Long-term Perspective in the Central Sahel
Side Events
Click here for a Calendar
| Monday, 12 October 2020 |
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Interconnected Challenges in the Central Sahel: Responding to the 2020 food crisis with a humanitarian, development and peace nexus approach |
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Responding to the Education Crisis in Central Sahel Invitation - English | French |
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Protection of Civilians in the Central Sahel Context: A mirage in the desert or a dream within our reach? |
| Tuesday, 13 October 2020 |
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Water Under Fire in Central Sahel - Protecting Access to Basic Services Event Flyer - English | French |
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Regenerating Central Sahel: Putting the Nexus to Action Invitation - English | French |
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Durable Solutions for Displacement in Central Sahel: Engaging local authorities and urban services (in French only) |
| Wednesday, 14 October 2020 |
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Reflections on Humanitarian and Development Realities in the Central Sahel Invitation - English and French |
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In the Face of Conflict and Climate Change: Needs and Perspectives of Internally Displaced People in Mali When Rain Turns to Dust |
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Locally-led responses: Key to achieve effective and sustainable change and upholding dignity for vulnerable populations in the Central Sahel Invitation - English | French |
| Thursday, 15 October 2020 |
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Distinct roles, shared spaces: The need for effective civil-military dialogue and coordination in the Central Sahel Invitation - English | French |
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The importance of a nexus approach to displacement in the Central Sahel Concept Note - English | French |
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Family Planning is a Basic Social Service |
| Friday, 16 October 2020 |
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Data Collection and Analysis for Evidence-Based Advocacy and Protection Programming: Towards a Protection Inter-Agency Tool Invitation - English and French PDF | English and French Word |
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Gender-Based Violence, Girls’ and Women’s Rights in the Central Sahel Invitation |
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Unlocking Humanitarian and Resilience Investing for the Sahel |
Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM)
Documents
Recordings
All recordings are available in English and French.
Thematic Tracks
Basic Social Services
Summary - EN | FR
Event Report - EN | FR
Event Recording - EN | FR
Regional Consultations - EN | FR
Country Report: Burkina Faso - FR
Country Report: Mali - FR | Annex [zip]
Country Report: Niger - EN | FR
Partners
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