Casa África will hold a conference entitled “Dialogue on the new Sahel policy” on Thursday 9th October at its headquarters in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The event is subsidised by the General Secretariat of Defence Policy of the Ministry of Defence. Its aim is to discuss the current challenges facing the Sahel in the face of a deep structural crisis.
The Sahel is at a critical juncture: political transformation, persistent insecurity and rising authoritarianism. In 2024 it accounted for 50 % of all terrorist activity in Africa, with more than 11,000 deaths. This scenario exacerbates the fragility of the region's states.
Jihadist, pro-independence and other armed groups exploit institutional loopholes. They are operating with increasing sophistication and are also spreading to the coastal countries of the Gulf of Guinea. Meanwhile, autocratic governments rule after coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.
These countries form the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which left ECOWAS in January 2025. They justify their rule as a response to insurgency, but their legitimacy depends on effective results against extremism. Western criticism focuses on the lack of human rights and democracy.
In this context, military response alone proves insufficient. Political inclusion and dialogue seem necessary strategies in the face of the spread of violent extremism. Military juntas are torn between repression and democratic bureaucracy.
In addition, Russia has emerged as a key ally of these regimes. Through the Africa Korps and military agreements, Moscow reinforces its presence and exploits resources such as gold and uranium. The Sahel becomes a geopolitical front in full transformation.
Programme of the day:
9.00 a.m. Opening speech: Director General of Casa África, José Segura Clavell.
9.20 a.m. Video screening: Intervention by Ángel Losada (Spain), former Special Representative of the European Union in the Sahel.
9.35am Dialogue 1: The Sahel and the new geopolitical reality.
Interview by Joan Tusell (head of Casa África's Media Department) with Maman Sidikou (Niger), former representative of the African Union to the Sahel and former permanent secretary of the G-5 Sahel.
10.30h Coffee break
11.00h Dialogue 2. Spain and its cooperation for peace in the new geopolitics of the Sahel. Lieutenant Colonel Francisco José Parellada García, Canary Islands Air Command. Colonel Jesús Díez Alcalde, Operations Command. Defence General Staff.
12.00h Closing
The event will be broadcast live on Casa África's YouTube channel.