Royal Atlantic Initiative, a precious opportunity for Sahel economies

The Royal Atlantic Initiative is a “precious opportunity” for Sahel economies, human rights expert Awa N’Diaye said in Geneva on Friday.

The Moroccan initiative is a “driving force for regional integration, necessary to meet the challenges of development and overcome the geopolitical tensions facing a region rich in natural and human resources, but hampered by political and economic upheavals,” N’Diaye told a conference on the theme “Right to Development and Stability.”

“Some of the major powers’ regional strategies are not helping to lay the foundations for a sustainable development process that consolidates human rights in all their forms,” she regretted, arguing that the solution lies in building a unified regional bloc that serves the interests of the countries in the region and the African continent as a whole.

In this respect, South-South cooperation is crucial, said the President of Espace Afrique International Organisation, at the event initiated by the Promotion du Développement Économique et Social (PDES) NGO, on the sidelines of the 55th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

According to N’Diaye, “the Morocco-Nigeria gas pipeline project and the Atlantic initiative are two innovative Moroccan models converging to provide a vital breath of fresh air for the economic fabric of the Sahel region.” Development is an essential pillar of the political and social stability we expect, she added.

El Habib Belkouche, President of the Centre d’études sur les droits de l’Homme et la démocratie, outlined indicators reflecting the extent of disparities and development imbalances in the regional and international context, considering that the development deficit is a direct factor in the sustainability of tensions, manifestations of instability and the propensity for violence and extremism in the region.

Over and above numerical indicators, it is necessary to develop a development approach that integrates the human rights dimension into the evaluation of policies and places the human factor at the heart of the process, he pointed out.

Belkouche stressed the need to pursue joint efforts in this part of Africa in favor of democratic governance to ensure human development that gives hope to future generations.

As for Souhail Belhaj Klaz, researcher and lecturer at the Geneva Graduate Institute, he took stock of the results of international cooperation, which he deemed insufficient to create a climate of stability and generate a real development dynamic that makes the most of the Sahel region’s immense natural and human resources.

During this event moderated by Aicha Douihi, President of Geneva Observatory for Peace, Democracy and Human Rights, Belhadj Klaz noted that partnership agreements with Sahel countries, particularly youth empowerment policies, have not produced tangible results, as the structural reasons for the unrest and imbalances inherent in the economic and social fabric have not been tackled.

The concept note for the event drew attention to the fact that the region’s countries face several challenges in realizing the right to development. These include challenges linked to climate change, the management of drinking water resources, ongoing flows of migrants and refugees, and security threats, notably violent extremism.