Avoiding the Sandstorm in the Sahel: A Reflection on ... · for Africa, target this region, but could deepen policy contradictions between securitization and development cooperation

FEPSFebruary 2018

AvoidingtheSandstormintheSahel:AReflectiononSecurity,MigrationandDevelopment

Rome,20February2018

FEPSActivityReport

FEPS|RueMontoyer40,B-1000Brussels|Tel+3222346900|Fax+3222800383|[email protected]

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TheSahelisacrucialregionforpolicy-makingattheEuropeanandinternationallevel.Asecurityandstrategic cornerstone for European powers since colonization and a key area in terms ofdevelopmentchallenges,todaytheSahelhasgainednewrelevanceduetotheso-called“migrationcrisis”.NewpolicytoolsimplementedbytheEuropeanUnion,suchastheEUEmergencyTrustFundfor Africa, target this region, but could deepen policy contradictions between securitization anddevelopment cooperation. A longer-term perspective is greatly needed to tackle extreme povertyand to create local economic opportunity. In order to explore the interconnection between thedifferentpolicyareasofmigration,development, securityandpeace in the region, theFoundationforEuropeanProgressiveStudies(FEPS),andtheIstitutoAffari Internazionali(IAI)cametogetherinRome on 20 February 2018 to present the volume The Security-Migration-Development NexusRevised:APerspectivefromtheSahel.

Adirectconnectionbetweendevelopmentandmigration?

Astudyontherevisednexusamongsecurity,migrationanddevelopmentresonateswithinapublicdebate recently dominated by the idea of a “migration crisis”. According to the conventionalnarrative, Europe has been inundated by a “tsunami of migrants” from the African continent.According to Bernardo Venturi (Researcher, IAI), this is not the case: Europe does not face anunprecedentedcrisis,butitdoeshavetodealwithdifferentflowsthathavedevelopedinthelasttenyears.Migrationisaboveallastructuralandintra-Africanphenomenon.

Atthesametime,theSaheliscrucialnotjustfromamigrationpointofview.ErnstStetter(SecretaryGeneral, FEPS) spoke of why Africa as awhole doesmatter, independently from the hot topic ofmigration:astrongdemographicsurgeonthecontinent,decisiveeconomicgrowth,variousclimate


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challengesandgeographicalproximitywithEurope.Anintegratedapproachondifferentpolicyareasisthusstronglyneeded.

Furthermore, one of themain findings of theresearch, supported by agrowing body of scientificstudies, is that there is nodirectandclearconnectionbetween better livingconditions and a dramaticdecrease inthenumberofmigrants, particularly inthe first phases ofdevelopment when,counter-intuitively,asurgein migration flows mayoccur. Analysis of recent

yearsshows,forexample,howcountrieslikeNigerandBurkinaFaso,amongthelowestrankedintheHuman Development Index, are not themain countries of origin formigrants. Instead, themajorflowsoriginatefromcountrieslikeSenegalandNigeria,wherecomplexsocialandpoliticaldifficultiespersist. Migration policies adopted by the European Union do not fully consider this apparentparadox, thereby endangering their own success. On the contrary, policies focused on bordersecuritization, aimed at stopping rather than managing mobility, could limit developmentopportunitiesinAfricaandfosterirregularmigrationtowardsEurope.

Theperilsofsecuritization

Increasingly focusing resources and political will on border control risks politicizing the nexusbetween security,migrationanddevelopment.While these fieldsof action are surely intertwined,developmentcooperationshouldnotbeaimedsolelyatsecuritypromotion.Inthisperspective,therelationshipbetweenEuropeandAfricahasenteredanewhistoricalphase,recalledVenturi:aphaseofsecuritization.ButtheoriginalgoalofEUdevelopmentcooperationistheeradicationofpoverty,notthesecuritizationofborders.

This contradiction is embodied by the EUEmergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF),launchedin2015,whichaimsateradicatingtherootcausesofmigrationincountriesoforiginandtransit,includingintheSahelandin the Lake Chad region. Giulia De Ponte(Policy Coordinator, Italian Network ofInternationalNGOs)denouncedadistorteduse of development funding in projectsenhancing customs checks and othermeasures under the “better migrationmanagement” formula. Furthermore, the


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Fund’s resources are geographically oriented along the migratory routes towards Europe, at thesame time identifying young men as first targets. These choices contradict the universal goal oferadicatingextremepoverty,whichshouldguideEuropeanpolicies.

The contradictions of the EUTF are further deepenedby awidespread lack of preliminary analysisconcerningrealneedsontheground,andbyalimitedattentiontotherespectofhumanrights.ForexampleNiger,akeypartneroftheEUintheregion,hasapprovedanewnationalstrategyagainstirregularmigration, followingpressures fromEuropeans,mostlydisregardinganypolitical dialogueon respecting human rights. In this way, conditionality has been introduced by the EU in itsrelationshipwiththeAfricancountry,asexposedalsobythebilateralMigrationPartnershipsignedbetween the EU and Niger. Among projects financed by the EUTF, the “AJUSEN” project1 is thestarkestexampleofconditionedfunding.Theagreementonreturnsin2016constitutesanothersignofachangingrelationship,influencedtoanevengreaterextentbythemigrationissue.

IfthesepolicieshaveindeedreducedthenumberofpeoplereachingEurope,theyhavealsodrivenmigrants tomoredangerouschannels,whileactivities linkedtohumanmobilityhavebeenpushedtowardirregularroutes.Atthesametime,thisnewpoliticalapproachtomigrationanddevelopmentendangers local peace-building efforts, such as actions put in place byMali and Chad, which areincentivizedtoreacttotherequestsofEuropeandonors.

Migration as a phenomenon has surely many repercussions at the local level: looking at themigratoryhistoryofSahel,RobertoForin(ResearchCoordinator,InternationalCentreforMigrationPolicyDevelopment,Vienna)underlinedhowmigrationhasbeenarelevantsourceofrevenuesforvarious local populations and how policies implemented during the last years have increasinglyimpacted on local relations of power. This is highlighted by the cases of Tuareg and Tebupopulations,directly involved in recentnegotiationswith the Italiangovernment toassureamorecontrolled Southern Libyan border. Libya offers another case of evident local repercussions ofinternational migration policies: starting in 2000, the government led by Muammar Gaddafiintroduced more restrictive policies, under European influence. The outcome was an impressivegrowthinirregularmigration:inthespaceofafewyears,1.5millionSub-SaharanAfricanresidentsinLibyawererenderedirregularmigrants.Atthesametime,evenifmigrationintheSahelremainsanhistoric constant with some consolidated migratory axes and hubs (Khartoum, Agadez), socialtransformations occurring in the last 50 years at the local level, such as urbanization in Northern

1 For further information, see the European Commission website: Support for justice and security in Niger to fight organised crime, smuggling and human trafficking, 2016, https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/node/108683_pl.


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AfricaanddemographicpressuresinmanyregionsofSub-SaharanAfrica,haveaccruedastructuraldimension.

Abroaderandlong-termperspective

Thisstructuraldimensionof themigrationphenomenonrequiresanevendeeperunderstandingofthe nexus with security and development. In this perspective, ElenaMasi (Project Officer, ItalianAgency for Development Cooperation) recalled the new Italian law on development cooperationwhich commenced implementation in 2015. The law constitutes a novel instrument to tackledevelopment causes ofmigration, by enhancing the involvement ofmigrant communities throughmigration policies and development cooperation. Currently, the Italian Agency on DevelopmentCooperationoperateson the root causesofmigration in theSahel regionbyaddressing individualchoicesofmigrants,oftendisregarded.Inthiscontext,itrecognizesthevitalimportanceofcreatinglocaleconomicopportunity.Toachievearealindividualempowerment,moreinformationcampaignsareneededandaroadmaponregularmigrationfordevelopmentmustbeenvisaged.

A broader approach should also consider other policy areas, such as agriculture and trade. Foragriculture, Italy has invested in initiatives that value linkages between rural and urban areas,involving also the private sector. On this matter, development cooperation finds itself at acrossroads: either looking for innovative and inclusive policies, or remaining stuck inside a sterileacademic debate on the role of the private sector in cooperation. The same goes for the linkbetween development and security: it is crucial to understand the distorted effects of militaryinterventionsintheSahel,assecuritycrisesintheregionhavedeepsocialcauses.

Theneedforanevidence-basedanalysis

Thecomplexitieshighlightedsofarshowthatanevidence-basedanalysisonthenexusisparamount,particularly in the Sahel, which has become the most important laboratory for these policy


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developments. Bashair Ahmed (Executive Director, Shabaka Social Enterprise) stressed theimportanceofcontextualizingrecentpoliticalandsocialdevelopmentsintheregion,consideringforexamplethatthecurrentcriticalsituationinNigerisduealsotoconflictsinLibya.Theconsequencesare particularly dire for Sub-Saharan African migrants stranded in the conflict, because they aredeniedanyrealmobilityopportunity.

ContextualizationandabroaderanalysisarealsoneededinordertounderstandthatEuropeisfacingmixedmigration flows.Migrants’personal status could changeduring their journey towards Libya.Consequently,itmaynotbepossibletodrawacleardistinctionbetweenasylumseekersandmixedflowsofeconomicmigrants.ThiscouldbecomeaconsolidatedpolicychallengethatEuropeshouldhave increasedreadiness to tackle.Moreover, there is the issueofenvironmental refugees,whosepersonalsituationisgivenevenlessattentionbytheinternationalcommunity.

For all these reasons, a deeper understanding of the nexus among development, security andmigrationismandatory.AsVassilisNtousas(PolicyAdvisor,FEPS)statedinhisfinalremarks,theriskis that migration will obscure other crucial issues in the relations between Africa and Europe.Accordingly,evidence-basedanalysiswillbecomeincreasinglycentralinthedaysahead,toimprovebothpolicy-makingandpublicdebate.

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Avoiding the Sandstorm in the Sahel: A Reflection on ... · for Africa, target this region, but could deepen policy contradictions between securitization and development cooperation