SAVING THE SAHEL
On the southern border of Africa's great desert, the Sahara, there is a region known as the Sahel. It is huge, stretching 5,000 kilometers from the west coast of Africa to the east coast, and for 1,000 kilometers south of the Sahara. Although the Sahel is hot and dry, it gets just enough rain every year for some grass to grow there. This is the main source of food for the cows, sheep, and goats raised by the local people. However, for many reasons, including climate change, large parts of the Sahel have been turning into desert, and animals can no longer survive there. It is therefore becoming increasingly difficult for local communities to get sufficient food and to make a living.(lines 1–7)
Governments throughout Africa have long realized that the transformation of the Sahel into desert would eventually affect the 100 million people living there. However, the problem seemed impossible to solve. Then, in 2007, all the African countries agreed to set up and partially pay for an ambitious project known as the "Great Green Wall" (GGW): planting an enormous forest across the whole Sahel, from the west to the east. "It was going to be a very complex project," says environmentalist Mariam Sani. "For example, irrigation systems would need to be built throughout the entire region, to make sure the trees survive."(lines 8–14)
By 2020, however, it was clear the project was failing. Of the money that was required – more than 30 billion dollars – very little had been given, and only 4% of the forest had been planted. Moreover, many environmentalists had begun criticizing the initial idea of a "wall" of trees. Planting a single forest across the whole Sahel, they said, was extremely expensive and too difficult to organize. "Instead, we suggested investing in individual villages in the region," says Sani. "This would mean developing programs that would deal with the specific needs of each community. That would be far more practical and a better use of the money."(lines 15–21)
In January 2021, this new approach to the GGW project was adopted at an international conference known as the One Planet Summit. All the participating countries agreed to provide 14 billion dollars to finance specific programs in the project for the years 2021–2025. Some of those programs involve setting up new farms in the Sahel. Others offer the local people training in new farming techniques.(lines 22–26)
Developers of the new programs have consulted with the Sahel communities in order to make use of their local knowledge. "The villagers know which crops and trees grow best on their land, and this contributes to the success of the projects," explains Sani. As examples, she mentions one community that decided to grow medicinal plants, and another that planted thousands of fruit trees. "Much of what they grow is sold at local markets," she says. "This means the Great Green Wall project is providing many people with good sources of income. Moreover, it has already prevented parts of the Sahel from becoming a desert. This gives us great hope for the future of the region."(lines 27–33)