“The spread of insecurity from the Sahel to the northern coastal states of the Gulf of Guinea is a major concern” for the European Union, said an EU spokesperson on Monday 22 September when asked by Agence Europe about the threat posed in West Africa by the Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) terrorist group, affiliated with al-Qaeda.
“The EU is currently reflecting on how it can renew its approach to the Sahel in order to contribute to peace, security and development and protect the EU’s interests at a time of profound transformations in the region”, the spokesperson added.
Kayes and the risk of regional contagion. Research carried out in recent months by the Timbuktu Institute, an African centre for peace studies based in Dakar (Senegal), has highlighted the “exponential” increase in JNIM activities in Kayes, the economic and migratory crossroads of Mali’s border region with Guinea, Mauritania and Senegal.
According to the institute, the recurrent attacks on vital infrastructure in this area are aimed at economically stifling Bamako and accelerating the withdrawal of the Malian state. At the same time, however, the terrorist group is extending its operations beyond Mali, with areas under its control in Burkina Faso and Niger, reported incursions into Benin, Togo and Côte d'Ivoire and now attempts to infiltrate Mauritania and Senegal.
An economic “jihad” in a fragile cross-border area, fuelled by community tensions. “JNIM has already illegally infiltrated key economic sectors, such as logging and mining, which depend on trade with Mauritania and Senegal. JNIM’s interests in these sectors enable it to establish cross-border networks”, stressed the institute in a press release.
Dr Bakary Sambe, Director of Research, calls for enhanced regional cooperation that goes beyond a strictly security framework and is based on intelligence sharing, the securing of transport routes, and preventive strategies to counter the exploitation of social divides by JNIM.
The terrorist group is taking advantage of persistent socio-economic weaknesses, fuelled by massive youth unemployment and intensive gold mining by foreign companies. Porous borders encourage the expansion of transnational criminal networks, while the low level of awareness among the population and the spread of Salafism as an ideological matrix are all vulnerabilities that JNIM uses to extend its influence.
“Europe cannot be complacent”. Faced with this situation, “Europe cannot be complacent”, said Mr Sambe at a conference in Brussels on Wednesday 10 September, noting that European partners were focusing their attention more on the east of the African continent. For its part, the EU has stated that it is implementing “an integrated response” to support threatened coastal states in West Africa.
“The EU’s approach is holistic, combining political dialogue, support to security and defence forces, initiatives to promote resilience and social cohesion, investment in socio-economic development, humanitarian aid, communication activities and efforts to combat disinformation”, said the EU spokesperson, underlining the “strong” partnership with Mauritania (see EUROPE 13549/24) and Senegal (see EUROPE 13676/32).
Are the EU’s strategic corridors under threat? In a report published in August by the European Commission’s research department, a series of West African corridors close to the Kayes region were identified as “potentially highly productive” for future ‘Global Gateway’ investment (see EUROPE 13695/7).
Two corridors are coastal (Praia-Dakar-Abidjan and Abidjan-Lagos) and two others are “hinterland” routes linking Burkina Faso and Niger to the seaports of Abidjan and Cotonou respectively. “For the latter two, the security of these economic routes and the resilience of local populations against jihadist pressure go hand in hand”, stressed the EU spokesperson.
“The European Commission is currently undertaking and further envisaging, along these corridors, a series of investments in ‘hard’ infrastructure (...) and in ‘soft’ measures to facilitate transport and trade. As part of those, the security of people and the transit of goods is being addressed through capacity building and logistical support to security forces active on the corridors”, the spokesperson added.
To see the Timbuktu Institute report on the JNIM in Kayes: https://aeur.eu/f/iku; and the report on the tri-border area of Mali, Mauritania and Senegal: https://aeur.eu/f/ikv (Original version in French by Bernard Denuit)