Germany and France support the battle against terrorism and human trafficking in the Sahel region, like reported by deutschland.de
Germany and France want to host a conference of supporters in the battle against terrorism and human trafficking in the Sahel zone. It is planned for September in Berlin, said a spokesperson of the German Federal Ministry of Defence. At present, efforts are being made to persuade more countries to take part, he continued, whereby the emphasis will be not only on money, but also on support in the form of training, equipment and infrastructure for the security forces in West Africa. Spain and Italy have already signalled interest, he stated, and representatives of the United Nations and the European Union will be invited.
“It is important for us to bring other European partners on board”, Federal Minister of Defence Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) said beforehand in Niger, where she was visiting a construction site for the future headquarters of the G5 Sahel States. The Minister indicated that Germany would be supplying some 50 utility vehicles such as lorries, forklifts and fire trucks to Niger by the end of 2017. France will then be responsible for training the drivers. Von der Leyen has already provided Niger’s security forces with motorcycles, trucks and phones worth five million Euros.
New prospects
The G5 Group was established in 2014, with the members being Mauretania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad. The region is currently facing the challenge of Islamic terrorist militias. Germany and France seek to support the Sahel states in the battle against terrorism and combat the causes of the outflow of refugees.
Together with the European Union, both countries resolved at the 19th Franco-German Council of Ministers in July 2017 to expand their development cooperation with the states in the Sahel zone. The goal of the joint “Alliance for the Sahel” is to provide vocational training and investments in agriculture and infrastructure to create jobs above all for young people. Germany and France wish to support the five states in combatting corruption, too.
These measures fit into the “Federal Government Africa Policy Guidelines” drawn up by the German Federal Foreign Office, which emphasize the goal “to strengthen African ownership by empowering African partners to carry out successful crisis prevention and effective crisis response.” To this end, Germany seeks to support countries with training, advice and equipment for the armed and security forces.
