The UN Secretary General has warned that the Sahel region is at a breaking point as donors pledged more that €1 billion to help the crisis-hit African region.
International donors on Tuesday agreed to give €1.4 billion ($1.7 billion) in aid to the central Sahel, which the UN said was close to ‘breaking point.’
Conditions in the sub-Saharan belt spanning Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are worsening, with 13.4 million people in need of assistance.
Donors agreed “to help stem what would otherwise become one of the world’s biggest humanitarian crises,” the UN said in a statement.
Denmark hosted the virtual summit, in partnership with Germany and the EU, in Copenhagen.
“The central Sahel region is at a breaking point,” UN Secretary General said in a video message. “It is a warning sign for us all requiring urgent attention and resolution.
Guterres said violence was on the rise and internal displacement had increased 20-fold in less than two years.
The number of families facing hunger has tripled, the UN chief added, while climate and the COVID-19 pandemic threatens livelihoods.
“We need to reverse this downward spiral with a renewed push for peace and reconciliation,” Guterres said. Read more…
