UNOWAS (West Africa and the Sahel)
July 2022
On 7 July, the Council held a briefing and consultations on West Africa and the Sahel (S/PV.9086). Special Representative and head of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) Mahamat Saleh Annadif briefed on the Secretary-General’s report on the region (S/2022/521). The Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission, Ambassador Rabab Fatima (Bangladesh), and civil society representative Rabia Djibo Magagi, Coordinator of the Association Alliance for Peace and Security, also briefed.
January 2022
On 10 January, the Security Council held a briefing (S/PV.8944), followed by consultations, on West Africa and the Sahel. Special Representative and head of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) Mahamat Saleh Annadif presented the Secretary-General’s latest report on the region and the activities of UNOWAS (S/2021/1091). Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Ghada Fathi Waly and Cécile Thiombiano Yougbare from Médecins du Monde, who spoke on behalf of the People’s Coalition for the Sahel, also briefed. During the meeting, Ghana and Ireland, the co-penholders on UNOWAS, announced that they planned to propose a presidential statement on West Africa and the Sahel, which Council members started negotiating at the end of January.
August 2021
On 17 August, the Security Council adopted a presidential statement (S/PRST/2021/16) following up on its 8 July briefing on West Africa and the Sahel and the activities of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) (S/PV.8836). The statement expressed concern about the deteriorating situation in some countries in the region; the growth of terrorism in the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin, as well as in the wider West African region; and piracy in the Gulf of Guinea. The presidential statement recognised the adverse effects of climate change, ecological changes and natural disasters on the security and stability of West Africa and the Sahel region.
February 2021
On 3 February, the Security Council adopted a presidential statement on West Africa and the Sahel (S/PRST/2021/3), proposed by penholders Ireland and Niger following Council members’ 11 January bi-annual briefing on the region. The statement welcomed presidential and legislative elections held in 2020 in West Africa and the Sahel. It called on “all political stakeholders to further advance national political dialogue and to take concrete steps to allow sustainable reconciliation”. It further called for continued support and enhanced cooperation to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, including “for equal and affordable access to the vaccine as well as essential health services”.
January 2021
On 11 January, Security Council members held a VTC briefing with the Special Representative and head of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Mohamed Ibn Chambas, who presented the Secretary-General’s 24 December 2020 report on West Africa and the Sahel (S/2020/1293). At the time of writing, Council members were still negotiating a draft presidential statement on the region proposed by Ireland and Niger.
July 2020
On 9 July, Council members held an open VTC meeting (S/2020/706), followed by a closed VTC session, on West Africa and the Sahel. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, head of UNOWAS, presented the Secretary-General’s latest report on the region (S/2020/585). Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, the coordinator of the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad, spoke about the link between climate change and security, in particular in the Lake Chad Basin and the Sahel. On 28 July, the Council adopted a presidential statement, proposed by Belgium and Niger, following up on the 9 July meeting (S/PRST/2020/7). The statement, among other things, expressed concern about the potential of the COVID-19 pandemic to exacerbate existing fragilities in West Africa and the Sahel, undermine development, worsen the humanitarian situation and disproportionately affect women and girls, children, refugees, internally displaced persons, older persons and persons with disabilities.
February 2020
On 11 February, the Council adopted a presidential statement on West Africa and the Sahel, which called on national stakeholders in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Niger, Mali and Togo to work together to facilitate the timely preparation for, and holding of, genuinely free and fair, credible, timely and peaceful elections that are scheduled during 2020.
January 2020
On 8 January, the Security Council held a briefing on West Africa and the Sahel with Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Special Representative and head of the UNOWAS, who presented the Secretary-General’s latest report on the region. Consultations followed the public session. The mandate was renewed for a three-year period through an exchange of letters with the Secretary-General.
December 2019
On 16 December, the Council held a briefing on intercommunal violence and terrorism in West Africa. Briefings via VTC were given by the Special Representative and head of the UNOWAS Mohamed Ibn Chambas and AU Peace and Security Commissioner Smaїl Chergui. The concept note for the meeting, organised by Côte d’Ivoire and the US, noted that it was being held to discuss the “shared drivers of intercommunal violence and violent extremism”.
August 2019
On 7 August, the Council adopted a presidential statement on West Africa and the Sahel, which followed the 24 July briefing by the Special Representative and head of UNOWAS, Mohammed Ibn Chambas. Among various issues addressed, the statement welcomes a planned strategic review of UNOWAS, inviting the Secretary-General to present to the Council its recommendations and his observations by 15 November.
July 2019
On 24 July, the Council held its semi-annual briefing on West Africa and the Sahel (S/PV.8585). Special Representative and head UNOWAS Mohammad Ibn Chambas briefed, presenting the Secretary-General’s 5 July report on West Africa and the Sahel. After the meeting, Côte d’Ivoire circulated a draft presidential statement that it had prepared with Belgium, as co-penholders on West Africa and the Sahel, and negotiations on the text began at the end of July.
May 2019
On 16 May, the Council held a briefing on the Joint Force of the Group of Five for the Sahel. Assistant Secretary-General for Africa Bintou Keita briefed on the Secretary-General’s latest report on the force. The Council also heard briefings from Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Alpha Barry of Burkina Faso (as the rotating presidency of the G5 Sahel), AU High Representative for Mali and the Sahel Pierre Buyoya, EU Special Representative for the Sahel Angel Losada, and Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime Yury Fedotov. Council members issued a press statement following the meeting, welcoming the steps taken by the G5 Sahel states towards the full and effective operationalization of the force and encouraging its continued scale-up to demonstrate tangible operational results (SC/13811).
January 2019
On 10 January, the Council was briefed by Special Representative Mohamed Ibn Chambas on the Secretary-General’s latest report on developments in West Africa and the Sahel and the activities of UNOWAS.
August 2018
On 10 August, the Council adopted a presidential statement on West Africa and the Sahel. The statement, which covers a range of issues facing the region, welcomed collective efforts, under the leadership of the Deputy Secretary-General, to recalibrate the UN’s Sahel strategy to expedite its impact and encouraged greater coherence of the UN system and partners through implementation of the UN Support Plan for the Sahel. The presidential statement marked the first time that the Council addresses the herder-farmer conflicts in the region. It expressed concern for increased tensions between pastoralists and farmers, which the statement describes as being driven by competition for natural resources, rapid population growth, weak governance, pressures related to climate and ecological factors, and the circulation of small arms and light weapons. Country situations that are touched on in the statement include Togo, Guinea-Bissau, and The Gambia, along with regional security initiatives such as the G5 Sahel joint force and the Multinational Joint Task Force to combat Boko Haram.
July 2018
On 17 July, Special Representative and head of UNOWAS Mohammed Ibn Chambas briefed the Council on developments in the region and the activities of the UN regional office, as outlined in the Secretary-General’s latest report. Chambas covered how the spillover of the Malian crisis is increasingly affecting Burkina Faso and Niger. He also talked about the continued threat posed by terrorist groups in the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin. He flagged violence between farmers and herders as increasingly representing a “major security threat in the region”, while noting that UNOWAS was monitoring the situation in countries with forthcoming elections, such as Mauritania, Nigeria and Senegal, as well as the ongoing political crisis in Togo. Following closed consultations, members issued press elements, which included expressing concern over the increase in conflicts between farmers and herders. At the end of July, members had just begun negotiations on a follow-up presidential statement on West Africa and the Sahel, which Côte d’Ivoire and Sweden had prepared.
May 2018
On 23 May, the Council held a briefing on the joint force of the Group of Five for the Sahel (G5 Sahel), or FC-G5S. It was briefed by Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Bintou Keita, who reiterated the importance of using assessed contributions to support the force as recommended by the Secretary-General in his 8 May report on the joint force. Permanent Secretary of the G5-Sahel Maman Sidikou, Permanent Observer of the AU to the UN Fatima Kyari Mohammed, and Ambassador of the EU to the UN João Pedro Vale de Almeida also briefed. Later that day, Council members issued a press statement welcoming progress implementing resolution 2391 and the continued determination of G5 States to address the impact of terrorism and transnational crime in the Sahel region. The press statement encouraged the G5 States to achieve the full operational capacity of the force as soon as possible and insisted on the critical need for generating support through the swift disbursement by donors of all pledges.
January 2018
On 11 January, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, the Special Representative and head of UNOWAS, briefed the Council on the Secretary-General’s latest report on the region. Several Council members made public statements before continuing discussions in consultations. On 30 January, the Council adopted a presidential statement on the West Africa and Sahel region and activities of UNOWAS. The statement, inter alia, looked forward to ongoing activities undertaken by UNOWAS in the areas of conflict prevention, mediation and good offices, welcomed the regional countries’ efforts to address terrorism and transnational crime, and reiterated that the Secretary-General include assessing implementation of resolution 2349 on the Lake Chad Basin in his regular UNOWAS reporting, with specific attention in his next report on the region in July.
December 2017
On 8 December, the Council adopted resolution 2391 on support that the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) should provide to the Group of Five for the Sahel (G5 Sahel) Joint Force. The resolution included requesting the Secretary-General, through UNOWAS, to provide technical assistance, within its existing mandate and resources, to the Permanent Secretariat of the G5 Sahel in order for the Permanent Secretariat to support cooperation among the G5 Sahel States in the fields of security, governance and development.
July 2017
On 13 July, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Special Representative and head of UNOWAS, briefed the Council on developments in the region and the semi-annual UNOWAS report . After public statements by Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Russia and Uruguay, further discussions followed in consultations. On 24 July, the Council adopted a presidential statement , initiated by Senegal, in follow-up to the briefing (S/PV.8009). The statement, inter alia, welcomed developments in The Gambia and Côte d’Ivoire, highlighting the role of UNOWAS to support, as necessary, Côte d’Ivoire following the withdrawal of the UN peacekeeping operation to the country. The statement highlighted the terrorism threat in the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin and regional efforts through the Multinational Joint Task Force to combat Boko Haram, and the initiative of the Group of Five for the Sahel to establish a joint force. The presidential statement, among other elements, also encouraged further progress in implementing the UN Integrated Strategy for the Sahel. In this regard, it emphasised the importance of the UN and partners enhancing their programmatic capacity and focus on cross-border challenges, as well as reiterating the importance of UNOWAS’s collaboration with the Peacebuilding Commission.
June 2017
On 21 June, the Council unanimously adopted resolution 2359 welcoming the deployment by the Group of Five—Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger—of a joint force throughout the territories of its contributing countries with a view to restoring peace and security in the Sahel.
January 2017
On 12 January, the Council received briefings from Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Tayé-Brook Zerihoun and OCHA head Stephen O’Brien on the Lake Chad Basin crisis precipitated by the Boko Haram conflict. Fatima Yerima Askira of the Borno Women Development Initiative and Youth Programmes Coordinator at Search for Common Ground Nigeria also briefed via video teleconference from Maiduguri, Nigeria. A number of Council members expressed support for a proposed Council mission to the Lake Chad Basin region. On 13 January, the Council was briefed by the head of UNOWAS, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, on the Secretary-General’s latest report on the region. The meeting was followed by consultations where issues discussed included the political crisis in The Gambia, the independent evaluation of the UN Integrated Strategy for the Sahel (UNISS) and Boko Haram. In subsequent elements to the press delivered by the Council president, Council members reiterated the full content of the Council’s 21 December 2016 presidential statement on The Gambia.
December 2016
On 10 December, Council members issued a press statement that strongly condemned Gambian President Yahya Jammeh’s rejection on 9 December of the results of The Gambia’s recent presidential election. Members received briefings in consultations on the situation in The Gambia from Political Affairs Under-Secretary-General Jeffry Feltman on 12 December, 16 December, and 19 December. Following the consultations on 12 December, members issued press elements which included expressing support for the upcoming 13 December ECOWAS presidential mission to The Gambia. Members also issued press elements following the 16 December consultations that encouraged the AU and ECOWAS to pursue their efforts to avoid any deterioration in the situation, reiterated support for Chambas and urged Jammeh to cooperate. On 21 December, the Council adopted a presidential statement that welcomed the decisions on the political situation in The Gambia from the 17 December ECOWAS summit, and reiterated its request for Jammeh to accept the results.
July 2016
On 11 July, the head of UNOWAS, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, briefed (S/PV.7735) the Council on the Office’s report (S/2016/566). The briefing focused on the increasing terrorism threat to the region, the Boko Haram conflict in the Lake Chad basin, electoral developments across the region and progress in the merger of the UN Office for West Africa and the Office of the Special Envoy for the Sahel. The following day, Senegal circulated a draft press statement, reflecting the range of issues discussed during the meeting. Some Council members suggested Senegal upgrade the text to a presidential statement. The statement was finally adopted on 28 July after explicit reference to human rights in The Gambia was dropped (S/PRST/2016/11). On 27 July, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman and OCHA head Stephen O’Brien briefed the Council, at the request of the UK, on the humanitarian, political and security situation in the Lake Chad basin as a result of the Boko Haram conflict.
May 2016
On 13 May, the Council adopted a presidential statement (S/PRST/2016/7) welcoming Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari’s initiative to convene a high-level Regional Security Summit to evaluate the regional response to Boko Haram (S/PV.7692). It stated that Boko Haram continues to undermine peace and security in West and Central Africa and expressed alarm at its linkages with ISIL. The statement further highlighted the humanitarian crisis in the Lake Chad Basin region created by the conflict. On 26 May, the Council held a briefing on challenges in the Sahel, which focused on the impact of climate change and desertification to peace and security in this region. Mohammed Ibn Chambas, the head of UNOWAS briefed via video teleconference. Other briefers included Monique Barbut, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification; Jean-Paul Laborde, Executive Director of CTED; and Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, Coordinator of the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad.
March 2016
Council members undertook a visiting mission to West Africa in early March to Mali, Guinea-Bissau and UNOWAS in Dakar (S/2016/215). Council members visited Mali from 4 to 6 March, urging acceleration of the implementation of the 20 June 2015 peace agreement. Council members arrived in Guinea-Bissau on 7 March, where they urged political leaders to resolve its prolonged political crisis through dialogue and based on the country’s laws and constitution. On 8 March, Council members visited UNOWAS and were briefed on the office’s conflict prevention efforts and its monitoring of elections across the subregion; the increasing threat of terrorism to West Africa; the Boko Haram conflict; and the merger of the UN Office for West Africa and the Office of the Special Envoy for the Sahel. On 16 March, the Council held a briefing on the visiting mission.
February 2016
On 2 February, Council members issued a press statement condemning the 30 January Boko Haram attacks.
January 2016
On 14 January, Special Representative Mohammed Ibn Chambas briefed the Council on the latest UNOWA report. Following the briefing and consultations, Council members issued a press statement that stressed the importance of the upcoming elections in Niger, Benin, Cabo Verde, Ghana and the Gambia to be free, fair and peaceful. The press statement also highlighted issues such as the political tensions in Guinea-Bissau and efforts to combat Boko Haram. On 25 January, Council members discussed under “any other business”, the Secretary-General’s 14 January letter proposing the merger of the Office of the Special Envoy of the Sahel with UNOWA, which would rename the two offices the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS).
