Context

India has expressed serious concern over the security situation in the Sahel and Lake Chad region in West Africa, saying that terrorism, drug trafficking and organized crime have continued unabated in the area.

About

Lake Chad

• Lake Chad is located in the Sahelianzone of west-central Africa at the conjunction of Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria, and Niger.
• The freshwater lake is located in the far west of Chad and the northeast of Nigeria. Parts of the lake also extend to Niger and Cameroon.
• It is fed mainly by the Chari River through the Lagone tributary, which used to provide 90 percent of its water.
• It was once Africa’s largest water reservoir in the Sahel region, covering an area of about 26,000 square kilometres, about the size of the US state of Maryland and bigger than Israel or Kuwait.
  

Sahel

• The Sahel region of Africa is a 3,860-kilometre arc-like land mass lying to the immediate south of the Sahara Desert and stretching east-west across the breadth of the African continent.
• Commonly, the Sahel stretches from Senegal on the Atlantic coast, through parts of Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Sudan to Eritrea on the Red Sea coast.
  
  

Key-highlights

• India condemned terrorist attacks by Boko Haram in Nigeria and Lake Chad region and by Islamic State in West Africa.
• India also called for closer coordination in counter-terrorism cooperation. The international community also needs to develop a coherent, coordinated and cooperative approach to deal with the worrisome humanitarian situation in the Sahel.
• India lauded the positive developments and leadership of the countries of West Africa and Sahel for their commitment to sustainable peace and development, and safeguard fundamental rights.

Concerns

• Terrorism, drug trafficking and organised crime have continued unabated.

The Lake Chad region is one of the most unstable in the world. According to the 2020 Global Terrorism Index report, countries of the region are among the 10 least peaceful countries in Africa.

• Climate risks, food insecurity and metastasizing violence are all set to intensify in the region.
• The region’s violent conflicts are contagious.