The Sahel is often mentioned in the news in connection with terrorism, military coups, poverty, displacement and humanitarian crises. But behind these challenges lies another story that deserves greater attention: the region is rich in natural resources.
From the goldfields of Mali and Burkina Faso to the uranium deposits of Niger, the oil reserves of Chad and Sudan, and the fertile lands and water resources of the Lake Chad Basin, the Sahel possesses resources that could support economic growth and improve the lives of millions of people.
Yet, for many communities, this wealth has not translated into security or prosperity. In some places, the competition over natural resources has contributed to tensions, criminality and armed conflict. This raises an important question: can the Sahel turn its natural resources from a source of instability into an instrument for peace and development?
The answer will depend largely on governance.
Across the Sahel, the relationship between natural resources and security is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Gold, in particular, has become an important part of the regional economy. Mali and Burkina Faso are among Africa’s major gold producers, while artisanal and small-scale mining provides livelihoods for thousands of people.
But where government presence is weak, mining areas can become vulnerable to armed groups and criminal networks. Control over mining sites can provide these groups with money, influence and access to local communities. Gold is also relatively easy to transport across borders, making illegal trade difficult to monitor.
This does not mean that mining itself causes insecurity. The deeper problem is the absence of effective institutions capable of regulating the sector, protecting workers and ensuring that communities benefit from the resources found on their land.
For many people involved in artisanal mining, mining is not a choice between legality and illegality. It is a means of survival.
A better approach would therefore include formalising artisanal mining, improving working conditions, strengthening monitoring and creating legal channels through which miners can sell their products. Communities should also have a meaningful share in the economic benefits.
The issue is not limited to minerals. Land and water are perhaps even more closely connected to everyday security in the Sahel.
The region is highly vulnerable to drought, desertification, land degradation and unpredictable rainfall. Farmers depend on land for cultivation, while pastoralist communities depend on grazing routes and water sources for their livestock. As these resources become more difficult to access, competition can intensify.
In parts of Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad, disputes between farmers and pastoralists have sometimes developed into deadly violence. These conflicts are frequently presented only through ethnic or religious identities. Such explanations, however, can overlook the economic and environmental pressures underneath them.
Climate change does not automatically create conflict. But it can make existing problems worse.
When a farmer loses a harvest because of drought, or a pastoralist is unable to find grazing land, the pressure on already fragile communities increases. Where there are weak institutions for resolving disputes, relatively small disagreements can quickly become violent.
The Lake Chad Basin provides an important example of this connection between environment and security.
Lake Chad supports communities across Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon. Fishing, farming, livestock production and cross-border trade have supported generations of families. However, environmental changes, population pressures and insecurity have placed considerable strain on these livelihoods.
In northeastern Nigeria, particularly Borno State, the Boko Haram insurgency has added another layer to these challenges. Communities have faced displacement, destruction of livelihoods, restrictions on movement and loss of access to farmland and fishing areas.
For a displaced family, insecurity is not only the fear of an attack. It is also the loss of the ability to farm, fish, trade or earn an income.
This is why security cannot be separated from livelihoods.
A community may be protected from immediate attacks, but if its people cannot feed their families or rebuild their livelihoods, that security remains fragile.
The Sahel also sits at the centre of growing international interest in Africa’s strategic resources. Uranium in Niger, gold across the region and oil in countries such as Chad and Sudan have attracted international companies and foreign governments for decades.
This has contributed to a growing debate about resource sovereignty.
Across the region, citizens increasingly want governments to ensure that natural resources benefit local populations rather than primarily serving foreign interests or political elites. This concern is understandable.
However, resource sovereignty should not simply mean replacing foreign control with domestic corruption. The real objective should be transparent and accountable management of national resources.
Governments must publish clear agreements, strengthen institutions and ensure that communities see tangible benefits from extraction taking place around them.
There is also a need to rethink what the Sahel exports.
For decades, many African economies have depended on exporting raw materials while importing finished products. This limits the economic benefits that remain within the continent.
The Sahel needs greater investment in local processing and value addition. Gold, uranium, oil and other resources should contribute to local industries, jobs, skills and infrastructure.
The region also has an opportunity that extends beyond traditional extractive industries: renewable energy.
The Sahel receives enormous amounts of sunlight throughout much of the year. Solar energy could provide electricity to communities that remain poorly connected to national grids, while supporting schools, health centres, businesses and agricultural activities.
Energy access is closely connected to development. A young person with access to electricity, education, skills and employment has very different opportunities from one living in a community where basic services are absent.
This is why development should be treated as part of the region’s security strategy, rather than as something separate from it.
The international community also has a role to play, but its approach must change. External partners should support African institutions rather than create systems that leave local governments and communities dependent on outside actors.
Security assistance is important, but military responses alone cannot address the deeper causes of instability.
The Sahel needs an approach that connects security with governance, climate adaptation, livelihoods and resource management.
Regional cooperation will be equally important. Natural resources and environmental challenges do not respect national borders. Neither do trafficking networks or armed groups.
Countries sharing the Lake Chad Basin, for example, need stronger cooperation on water management, border security, trade and community development. Information sharing and coordinated policies can help prevent local problems from becoming regional crises.
The Sahel’s natural resources can either deepen its problems or help solve them.
The difference will be determined by how those resources are governed.
A gold mine should not only generate profits; it should create jobs and support surrounding communities. Oil revenue should translate into schools, healthcare and infrastructure. Water should be managed as a shared resource rather than becoming a source of conflict. Land should be protected so that future generations can depend on it.
Most importantly, communities must have a voice.
People living around mines, forests, rivers and grazing lands understand the realities of these environments better than anyone sitting in a distant capital. Their participation should therefore be central to decisions about natural resource management.
The Sahel does not lack resources. What it needs is stronger governance, fairer distribution of wealth and policies that put people at the centre of development.
The region’s security challenges cannot be solved by soldiers and weapons alone. Peace must also be built through livelihoods, accountable institutions, environmental protection and economic opportunity.
If the Sahel can achieve this, its natural resources could become more than commodities beneath the ground. They could become foundations for stability, dignity and a more secure future for millions of people.
The question facing the Sahel is therefore not whether it is rich.
It is whether its people will finally be able to benefit from that richness.