This publication is the result of the project “Governance and Security in the Sahel: Tackling Mobility, Demography and Climate Change”, conducted by the Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS) based in Brussels and the Istitu-to Affari Internazionali (IAI) based in Rome together with the National Democratic Institute (NDI), Washington, DC and with the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Inter-national Cooperation, and of the European Parliament.This research analyses the factors underpinning good govern-ance in the Sahel, and it explores how the quality of govern-ance is influenced by and can affect the management of demo-graphic changes, climate change and mobility. Each chapter also sets out some recommendations for local and internation-al stakeholders.Two main questions drive the overall research behind the pro-ject, and underpin the focus of each case study:
● What are the main actors, structures and policies that con-tribute to shaping governance in the Sahel? and
● What is the impact of existing governance – especially in the fields of climate change, demography and security – on mobility in and across the region?

Across the Sahel, desertification has caused migrations as a survival strategy by people who abandon their ancestral homes and, as a result, put pressure on southern towns and settlements as the Sahara Desert creeps further south. Projects like the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative (GGWSSI), which is meant to develop resilient desert communities, have achieved appreciable successes in their aim to “restore Africa’s degraded landscapes and in the process transform millions of lives in one of the world’s poorest regions, the Sahel”.24

The GG-WSSI – with its declared successes in Nigeria, Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, among others – is an encouraging model to adopt for the Lake Chad Basin, as it would help to consolidate projects to halt the surge of desertification and improve the land and aquatic agricultural potential of the region. Furthermore, if tech-nology could be adopted to harness the abundant sunshine and wind resources for the generation of renewable energy, agro-based industrial hubs could be established that should provide jobs for local people as well as enhancing their livelihood

Chapter 1 Hybrid Governance and Mobility in the Sahel: Stabilisation Practices Put to the Test
Chapter 2 Climate Change, Mobility and the Demographic Dynamic in Burkina Faso and Mali: What Impact on Women and Children?
Chapter 3 Demographic Change and Migrant Movements in Niger: The Role and Impact of Governance
Chapter 4 Governance, Climate Change and Security Challenges: The Case of Lake Chad
Chapter 5 An EU Integrated Approach in the Sahel: The Role for Governance
Chapter 6 From China to the Gulf Countries: The Impact of Foreign Powers on Governance in the Sahel
Chapter 7 Notes for Further Research

Edited by Bernardo Venturi FEPS project coordinator: Vassilis Ntousas IAI project coordinator: Bernardo Venturi