Climate, Peace and Security in the Liptako-Gourma Region

Background & Context

Africa��s Liptako-Gourma Region, part of the Central Sahel and spanning Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, sits at the epicenter of a deepening crisis where climate change impact and violent conflict threaten livelihoods, social cohesion and regional stability.

Communities across the three countries, particularly in the tri-border area, face escalating risks from extreme weather events, climate variability and land degradation, which intensify competition over water, arable land and natural resources �C fueling displacement, intercommunal tensions, and armed conflicts.

The Sahel is among the most climate vulnerable regions in the world, with 15 of the 20 countries most vulnerable to climate change globally located there. Despite this, the region, including the Liptako-Gourma Region, receives disproportionately low levels of climate finance.

In response to the compounding risks of climate change and conflict, the Climate, Security Mechanism �C through ��DP and its �C has deployed a Climate, Peace and Security Advisor to the (LGA). LGA is a key regional organization working jointly with senior leaders, policymakers and practitioners of the member states to advance climate, peace, and security solutions. It coordinates cross?border natural resource management and cooperation across Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, where climate pressures intensify conflict dynamics.

The Advisor provides technical expertise on climate, peace and security risks, including assessments, the development and implementation of policies and programmes, and supports inclusive governance processes at the regional, national, and local levels.

Bamako Declaration

The , adopted by West and Central African Member States (Burkina Faso, Chad, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal) at the Sahel Forum on Climate, Peace and Security in November 2023, marked a pivotal moment for the region. It brought together Sahelian governments and regional organizations towards a shared recognition that climate change, peace, and security are deeply interconnected, and integrated solutions to these challenges are a strategic priority for the Sahel.

The Declaration sets out a common agenda, calling for coordinated national and regional strategies, inclusive governance, and climate?responsive financing mechanisms. It has since become a cornerstone for collective action in the region, guiding policies, investments, and partnerships to address climate?induced fragility, and build shared pathways for resilience, sustainable peace, and long?term prosperity.

The world��s first National and Strategic and Action Plans on Climate Peace and Security

Building on the ministerial adopted in 2023, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger developed their first-ever National Strategic and Action Plans on Climate, Peace and Security, a first globally. The development of those plans was based on a broad, inclusive multi-stakeholder engagement process.

National and local government authorities, civil society, researchers, technical experts, and traditional leaders all contributed to ensure that the plans are both technically robust and locally grounded. This effort was supported in partnership with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) of the United Kingdom, supported by ��DP and the CSM Climate, Peace and Security Advisor deployed to the Liptako-Gourma Authority.

The Advisor played a key role in supporting analyses and studies to better understand conflict dynamics and drivers in the Central Sahel region. He also facilitated national consultations, as well as technical and validation workshops, helped establish governance arrangements, and supported cross-border foundations for data sharing, early warning, conflict prevention and the community-level application of climate information services and natural resource management. Looking ahead, the Climate, Peace and Security Advisor continues to support the implementation of national plans and assist the Liptako-Gourma Authority, as well as regional and government entities, in advancing a regional strategy and action plan on Climate Peace and Security, aligned with broader stabilization, recovery, and resilience frameworks.

Cross-border collaboration for Climate, Peace and Security

Across the Liptako-Gourma region, the Climate, Peace and Security Advisor played a central role in strengthening cross-border collaboration, supporting the development of shared systems, processes, and platforms that enable Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger to jointly anticipate and address climate-related security risks. He is working jointly with the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHS), AGRHYMET, ACMAD, and CORDEX to develop tailored hydroclimatological information and seasonal forecasts to support conflict prevention and risk management.

The Advisor worked closely with the Liptako-Gourma Authority, national and regional entities such as the Climate Commission for the Sahel Region (CCRS), and partners to promote common approaches to climate, peace and security analyses, harmonize data collection, and advance the development of a regional knowledge management platform that tracks climate, peace and security trends across borders. This work was reinforced through technical exchanges with multiple agencies responsible for data collection, verification and registration across Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, where experts from all three countries collaborated on indicators, methodologies, and tools for early warning and joint planning.

At the community level, the Advisor built the capacities of cross-border ��Conflict Prevention and Management Committees��, training members to use climate information, weather forecasts, and environmental data for mediation and natural resource management. These efforts, which spanned both institutional support and community engagement, ensured that cross-border collaborations evolved into a coherent regional system that links climate analyses, shared decision making, and locally led prevention efforts.

Capacity building sessions haven been provided to cross-border and local actors, including customary, religious, and traditional authorities from the Espace Sourou and Sahel Tilabery hotspot areas. The sessions were focused on natural resource management, climate stressed agrosylvopastoral and fishery production, sustainable natural resource management, social cohesion, peacebuilding and youth entrepreneurship, delivered through trainings in Bobo-Dioulasso and Kaya in Burkina Faso.