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STORY: UN / WEST AFRICA THE SAHEL
TRT: 03:38
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / FRENCH / RUSSIAN / NATS
DATELINE: 20 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE – NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, United Nations headquarters
20 DECEMBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Leonardo Santos Simão, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel:
“Regional leaders unanimously acknowledge insecurity, driven by terrorism and violent extremism, as the region's most urgent concern. Indeed, terrorist groups are becoming increasingly 4 aggressive, utilizing sophisticated weaponry, including drones. Moreover, recent attacks in the Central Sahel have resulted in significant loss of life among both civilians and security personnel.”
4. Wide shot, Security Council
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Leonardo Santos Simão, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel:
“The worsening humanitarian situation in other countries, such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria has led to increased displacement. I urge partners to contribute to the underfunded humanitarian appeal, which remains less than 50 per cent funded, leaving millions vulnerable.”
6. Wide shot, Security Council
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Leonardo Santos Simão, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel:
“It is unacceptable that over 8,200 schools in the region are closed due to insecurity. As noted by the Council in May, the right to education is essential for peace and security, yet this remains unheeded, denying children a future and feeding cycles of insecurity and instability.”
8. Wide shot, Security Council
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Levinia Addae-Mensah, Executive Director, West Africa Network for Peacebuilding:
“Ghana's National Peace Council, Sierra Leone's independent commission for peace and National Coalition and Nigeria's National Peace Committee, exemplify the region's peace infrastructure, which could be leveraged to enhance community recipients across the region.”
10. Wide shot, Security Council
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael Imaran Kanu, Ambassador, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Sierra Leone:
“We note the importance of the Multinational Joint Task Force in fighting terrorist groups in the Lake Chad basin, and the potential which the full operationalization of the ACA initiative present, particularly in addressing cross border threats to peace and Security and combating terrorist activity, including preventing recruitment and radicalization of young people.”
12. Wide shot, Security Council
13. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Anna Evstigneeva, Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Russian Federation:
“We are pleased to learn that an agreement on maintenance of visa-free travel and free trade throughout the zone has been reached.”
14. Wide shot, Security Council
15. SOUNDBITE (French) Jay Dharmadhikari, Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, France:
“France is concerned about the deterioration of the security situation in the central Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin, where terrorist attacks carried out by local branches of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, as well as intercommunal violence, have reached an unprecedented level of brutality. These abuses have disastrous humanitarian consequences, with more than 25 million people in need of assistance.”
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, United States:
“Across the region, nearly 33 million people are food insecure. The scale of displacement, according to UNHCR, has also dramatically increased. The United States is the largest single humanitarian donor in Africa, having provided more than $6.7 billion in humanitarian assistance across the continent in 2024 but this is not enough, and we can't do it alone. We as the international community, need to do more. We also need UN officials, including a charge.”
17. Wide shot, end of Security Council
“Insecurity, driven by terrorism and violent extremism,” is the region’s most urgent concern, a UN Special Representative for West Africa told the Security Council. Leonardo Santos Simão warned of increasingly aggressive terrorist groups using drones and advanced weapons, with deadly attacks in the Central Sahel claiming civilian and security lives.
Simão painted a stark picture of the worsening humanitarian crisis in countries like Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria, where displacement is surging. He urged international partners to respond to the region’s underfunded humanitarian appeal, emphasizing that “less than 50 percent funded” programs leave millions vulnerable.
The Special Representative also expressed grave concern over the closure of over 8,200 schools due to insecurity. “The right to education is essential for peace and security,” he said, recalling previous Council discussions on the issue. He warned that the lack of educational opportunities perpetuates cycles of instability and denies children a future.
Levinia Addae-Mensah, Executive Director of the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, pointed to regional peace infrastructure as a beacon of hope, highlighting initiatives such as “Ghana's National Peace Council, Sierra Leone's independent commission for peace, and Nigeria's National Peace Committee.” These mechanisms, she said, could bolster community-level resilience against insecurity.
Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to the UN, Michael Imaran Kanu, acknowledged the critical role of the Multinational Joint Task Force in combating terrorist groups in the Lake Chad Basin. He also emphasized the potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area (ACA) initiative in addressing cross-border threats, including preventing the radicalization of youth.
Anna Evstigneeva, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation, welcomed recent progress in regional cooperation, stating, “We are pleased to learn that an agreement on maintenance of visa-free travel and free trade throughout the zone has been reached.”
France’s Deputy Permanent Representative Jay Dharmadhikari expressed deep concern over the escalating security crisis in the Central Sahel and Lake Chad Basin. “Terrorist attacks carried out by local branches of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, as well as intercommunal violence, have reached an unprecedented level of brutality,” he said. Dharmadhikari underscored the dire humanitarian consequences, with over 25 million people in need of assistance.
Adding to the urgency, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations, stressed the alarming scale of food insecurity and displacement. “Across the region, nearly 33 million people are food insecure. The scale of displacement, according to UNHCR, has also dramatically increased. The United States is the largest single humanitarian donor in Africa, having provided more than $6.7 billion in humanitarian assistance across the continent in 2024, but this is not enough, and we can't do it alone. We as the international community, need to do more. We also need UN officials, including a charge.”
