On 23 February, the High Level Conference on the Sahel took place at the European Commission in Brussels. The conference, co-chaired by the European Union, the United Nations, the African Union and the G5 Sahel focused on strengthening international support to Africa’s Sahel countries in the areas of security and development, notably through the G5 Sahel Joint Force.  The meeting gathered Heads of State and Government from the European Union and the G5 Sahel countries (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger) as well as high level attendance from other participating countries.

The G5 Sahel bloc was set up in 2014 to discuss security and development in the region. In 2017, the five African nations launched a multinational force aimed at fighting terrorists in the Sahel region and this initiative had been supported by the international community.

The EU and its member states will allocate 176 million euros, thus doubling the EU funding, to support the Joint Security Force of the G5 Sahel group of countries. “The most important figure that I am happy to share with you today is that we mobilized a total support of 414 million euros. Thanks to a huge mobilisation not only from the EU and its Member States but also from the other international partners. The EU and its Member States contribute to these 414 million euros with a total 176 million euros,” Mogherini declared speaking about the need to back the response of the G5 Sahel group to the security challenges, including terrorism.