Researchers: Climate change is a driver of violent clashes in the Sahel
West Africa and the Sahel is one of the regions where people are most affected by climate change in the world. Climate change is often seen as a risk multiplier in this region. Because most people live on subsistence farming, extreme changes in the weather have an immediate impact on their survival. The Sahel zone is most vulnerable. It lies just underneath the Sahara desert. With global warming, access to land, water, and pastures is becoming more difficult. It creates competition. It is one of the drivers of violent clashes between farmers and herders, for example. Recent research has also shown how diminishing livelihood opportunities, caused by shrinking lakes, rising sea levels and other effects of climate change, can spill over to an increase in violent extremism and terrorism.
Our panel of experts includes:
- Angela Muvumba Sellström, senior researcher at the Nordic Africa Institute
- Ngozi Amu, Head of Research and Analysis at the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS)
The Nordic Africa Podcast is a series of discussions where we talk to political scientists, anthropologists, economists and other researchers about current issues and trends in Africa. We analyse the choices of African leaders, we challenge dominant narratives about the continent, and occasionally, we look into the crystal ball to see where Africa is headed. Hosts Heba Habib and Henrik Alfredsson and guesting experts guide us toward a deepened understanding of Africa’s role on the global scene.
Episodes from the Nordic Africa Podcast
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Webinar audio replay: Green Transition in Africa - Financing the Future
How can climate finance accelerate Africa’s green transition—ensuring inclusion, innovation, and justice?
This is a recorded file from the webinar...
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Politicians will not promote gender equality if it is not demanded from below
Over the 25 years since the UN Security Council adopted its landmark resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS), three main shifts have been...
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Talking about the Nordic's new Africa strategies — distinct but not incompatible
In this science-to-policy conversation, Jesper Bjarnesen, senior researcher at the Nordic Africa Institute, takes us through the common features in...
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Webinar audio replay: Sustaining democracy and women’s political representation in Ghana - The ‘in-betweenness’ of elections
Ghana has been democratizing since the early 1990s. Citizen’s participation in the democratic processes at the national level is high. While Ghana’s...
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Researcher on mining in Zimbabwe: “Currently, we see lithium mines just exporting to China”
Zimbabwe has rapidly emerged as one of the world’s largest producers of lithium – a mineral critical to the global green transition. But behind the...
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