Beyond humanitarian aid: The EU’s approach to alleviating food crisis in the Sahel at a time of global insecurity

In the 2021 Strategy for the Sahel, food security was among the EU’s top strategic priorities together with security, governance and development policies. But few months after the adoption of the Strategy, the Sahel faced unprecedented political, security and humanitarian challenges. Furthermore, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine exacerbated food crisis in Africa. All the above mentioned elements have sorely tested the EU’s ability to act efficiently in the region. Political instability (i.e. military coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger) has diminished opportunities for humanitarian intervention and development cooperation between the EU and local governments. In this paper, we will look at how the EU has historically addressed food crisis in the Sahel and how it intended to do so through its 2021 strategy, the regional context and the humanitarian challenges the Union has faced in recent years, and the responses it has been able to provide to the Sahelian population in the light of the global context.