Geopolitical Panorama Of The African Sahel Region

Bekhouche, Sami; Mansouri, Sofiane

المجلة الجزائرية للأمن والتنمية
Volume 15, Numéro 1, Pages 222-237
2026-01-01

Geopolitical Panorama Of The African Sahel Region

Authors : Bekhouche Sami . Mansouri Sofiane .

Abstract

The African Sahel is a rapidly shifting geopolitical zone shaped by climate stress, political instability, and growing global competition. Research highlights how desertification, water scarcity, and degrading farmland fuel local conflicts, displacement, and pressure on already fragile states. Armed groups exploit these tensions, spreading insecurity across borders. Recent coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have accelerated a diplomatic realignment away from traditional Western partners toward alternative actors like Russia, reshaping security cooperation in the region. Economically, weak infrastructure, limited diversification, and contested resource zones deepen vulnerability and external dependence. Overall, studies describe the Sahel as a convergence point of climate pressures, internal instability, and rival international interests, where long-term governance and adaptation reforms matter more than short-term military responses.