The Sahel region is a geographical belt in Africa that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, between the Sahara Desert in the north and the Savannah in the south. It is characterised by challenging environmental crises and conflicts.

A source who asked for anonymity said Emptech is not involved in the production of the new passport for the three Sahel states.

Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have formally withdrawn from the regional bloc known as ECOWAS, the body said Wednesday.

Military-led governments in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have made a series of moves recently to assert greater control over their mineral resources. Global gold companies have been in the line of fi

Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso were to officially quit the West African bloc Ecowas Wednesday, severing ties after years of strained relations that have reshaped trade routes in the Sahel.

"The rise of junta rule in the Sahel represents a complex interplay between decolonization and destabilization."

Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso have officially left West Africa’s main political and trade group ECOWAS after more than a year of diplomatic tension.

The withdrawal of three Sahelian countries from the West African trade organization, set to take effect on 29 January, has raised significant concerns among the diaspora. On 11 January, members of the diaspora gathered in Paris to call for a reversal of the decision and advocate for a return to civilian governance.

The exit of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso was the culmination of a year-long process during which the regional bloc tried to avert their departure.

A joint force of 5,000 troops from military-led neighbours Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali will soon deploy in their troubled central Sahel region, Niger's defence chief said on state television.

The Sahel, a semiarid region in Africa south of the Sahara Desert, has long been a focal point and an environmental issue .

Together with its partner, Réseau d'Initiatives de Journalists in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, and with funding from the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the project "Appui aux médias pour la prévention- media for conflict prevention and management in Burkina Faso,