Top players meet to tackle Sahel and Lake Chad Basin crisis at Jeddah conference
The Sahel and Lake Chad Basin region has finally received global attention after years of neglect, thanks to the High-Level Ministerial Donors Conference in Jeddah.
The crucial event, co-hosted by KSrelief and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, shed light on the plight of over 33 million people across six countries – Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Mali – struggling with conflict, displacement, and hunger.
Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, supervisor-general of KSrelief, deemed the conference a success, stating it brought a forgotten crisis to the forefront, giving voice to millions ignored for too long.
“The fact that we are all here today is already a success,” Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, supervisor-general of KSrelief, told Arab News on the sidelines of the event. “This conference has brought a forgotten crisis back to the forefront, where it deserves to be, and we are giving voice to millions who have been ignored for too long.”
The region’s multifaceted crisis, fueled by violent extremism, environmental degradation, and poverty, has struggled to secure international resources.
Gilles Fagninou, UNICEF‘s regional director for West and Central Africa, described the worrying situation as one of the most severe humanitarian crises, yet receiving far less attention than others. Millions are trapped in a cycle of suffering, forgotten by the world.
Armed groups like Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province have displaced over 11 million people, creating one of the largest displacement crises globally.
The humanitarian fallout is staggering, with families in overcrowded camps lacking basic necessities like food, clean water, and medical care.
The human cost is overwhelming, with over 3 million internally displaced persons in Nigeria and millions more across Chad, Niger, and Burkina Faso.
The conference aimed to address this human catastrophe, emphasizing the need for international support to alleviate the suffering of those affected.
With conflict and climate change converging, the situation demands urgent attention and collective action to prevent further devastation.
