It is according to the UN Secretary-General António Guterres who said THE Security Council On Monday, the growth of terrorist groups was “not just a dramatic regional reality.”
“Its groups’ progressive connections in Africa and beyond make them a growing global threat. »
The vast Sahel region which stretches almost coast to coast across Africa, accounts for 19 percent of terrorist attacks worldwide and for more than half of the global victims linked to terrorism.
Around four million people are now displaced in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and neighboring countries.
Respond to the threat
To address the crisis, Mr. Guterres called for a “Unified, coherent and consensus-based” regional responsecontinued financial support for humanitarian response plans and a development strategy to address the root causes of terrorism.
With this in mind, he encouraged the sharing of information and financial monitoring through the United Nations Global Counterterrorism Compactthe UN counter-terrorism coordination mechanism and the counter-terrorism strategy of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
He further noted that humanitarian appeals for the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin remain seriously underfunded. less than a quarter of the required $4.9 billion has been raised.
“Terrorists thrive where the social contract is broken,” he added, emphasizing the need to fight poverty and invest in sustainable development.
Collaboration and synergy
Omar Alieu Touray, president of the ECOWAS Commission, has warned that terrorism has spread beyond the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin to threaten all of West Africa.
He informed the Security Council that ECOWAS is accelerating the deployment of its standby force, starting with 1,650 troops and increasing to 5,000 with support from the region and its partners.
He said that although partners have taken steps to combat terrorism, the proliferation of these initiatives has led to “fragmentation”, hampering cooperation. He stressed that coordination and cohesion must be a priority.
“No amount of money, no amount of equipment will help us defeat terrorism if we do not collaborate and build synergy.“, declared Mr. Touray.
“Our current differences should not be exploited; they must be filled,” he added.
“Moral compass”
“We must reimagine ECOWAS not just as a regional bloc, but as a community of courage, the moral compass and stabilizing force of Africa.said Julius Maada Bio, President of Sierra Leone – who also holds the presidency of the Security Council for November – and President of ECOWAS.
He then called for democratic trust, decisive action in the fight against extremism and regional security and coordination.
For these reasons, he proposed an ECOWAS-UN-African Union pact – a coordinated mechanism to ensure predictable financing and operations across the region.
Publicado anteriormente en Almouwatin.
