This policy brief examines why The Gambia, despite being ranked among Africa’s safest countries, remains vulnerable to violent extremism. Regional insecurity—especially Mali’s crisis, Sahelian instability, and porous borders—creates significant exposure risks. Internal vulnerabilities amplify these threats: growing religious radicalization within some madrasa systems, the influence of reformist preachers, rising sectarian tensions, and severe youth unemployment. The brief stresses the need for a multisectoral approach combining security reform, stronger governance, regulation of religious education, community mediation, youth engagement, and empowerment of women and local leaders. Efforts led by the Gambian government, ECOWAS, civil society, and youth organizations—such as security sector reform, counterterrorism strategies, peace education initiatives, and the Youth, Peace and Security Action Plan—highlight progress. However, coordination remains weak, institutions operate in silos, and rural communities face structural marginalization and limited state presence, which heighten their vulnerability to radicalization and extremist narratives. Strengthening resilience requires sustained, integrated, and community-centered interventions.

Governance, Security, Youth, Extremism, Vulnerability, Violence, Radicalisation

Dr. Olakounlé Gilles Yabi’s article warns of a deep moral and institutional decline threatening West Africa and the wider African continent. Since 2020, constitutional manipulation, third-term bids and military coups have multiplied, revealing the normalization of political cynicism. Examples include Alpha Condé in Guinea, Alassane Ouattara in Côte d’Ivoire, and, more recently, Mamadi Doumbouya’s candidacy despite previous pledges. Across countries such as Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Tanzania, Benin, Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, electoral manipulation, repression, forced disappearances and media intimidation have become routine strategies to entrench power. In the Sahel, military regimes embrace what the author describes as “sovereign suicide,” sacrificing governance, social cohesion and basic services under the banner of sovereignty. Populations face escalating violence, economic collapse, displacement and school closures. Meanwhile, global powers continue extracting mineral resources, indifferent to local chaos. Yabi urges African leaders and civil societies to confront the continent’s extreme vulnerabilities before an irreversible loss of control occurs.

Politics, Sovereignty, Governance, Crisis, Coup d'État

The article outlines findings from the ENACT Africa Organised Crime Index 2023, highlighting rising illicit activity and growing vulnerabilities across Africa. It emphasizes that Guinea-Bissau has become a key hub for arms and cocaine trafficking, acting both as a source and transit country. Light weapons — often concentrated in the capital and border areas — flow through Guinea-Bissau into conflict zones in the Sahel and West Africa. Meanwhile, the country serves as a major transshipment point for South American cocaine destined for European markets. These illicit flows empower criminal and extremist groups, weaken institutional capacity, and increase the risk of violence and instability. The article warns of the urgent need for improved regional coordination and strengthened state resilience to tackle organized crime.

Governance, Security, Vulnerability, Institution, Trafic de drogue

The report “Report on Prioritization within the EBT Process for Adaptation in Agriculture and Water Resources, Republic of Chad” examines priority climate-adaptation measures for Chad in the agriculture and water sectors. It is part of the EBT (Technology Needs Assessment) process to identify, prioritize and plan technologies suitable for climate change impacts. The document highlights structural constraints — lack of financial resources, limited institutional capacity, land-tenure barriers, insufficient information and awareness — that hinder technology deployment. It proposes an enabling framework to overcome these barriers, including strengthening relevant institutions, easing land-tenure procedures, implementing Information-Education-Communication (IEC) campaigns, and facilitating access to financing mechanisms. The goal is to enhance the resilience of agricultural systems and water-resource management against climate hazards.

Governance, Agriculture, Climate change, Environment, water

The article “Education for Citizenship and Curricular Contextualization in Guinea-Bissau” explores how citizenship education can help build an inclusive, democratic society in Guinea-Bissau. The authors argue that beyond mere school access — which remains insufficient — the curriculum must be consciously structured around three core axes: the individual, the relational and the community. Through these dimensions, education should foster values, attitudes, and behaviors that uphold human rights, peace, gender equality, development education, environmental preservation, health education, and media literacy. The goal is to shape informed, responsible citizens capable of actively participating in communal life. The article also highlights the potential of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to support these aims. In short, education should go beyond access: it becomes a tool for social inclusion and curricular justice.

Culture, Governance, Education

As of March 2022, only about 1% of Chad’s population was fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and no prior data existed on vaccine hesitancy in the country. This cross-sectional study in N’Djamena (August–October 2021) surveyed 508 adults—patients, community members and healthcare workers—using a 25-item questionnaire and an adapted WHO SAGE Vaccine Hesitancy Scale. Overall, 52% said they would accept a COVID-19 vaccine, with higher acceptance among patients (67%) than community members (44%) and healthcare workers (47%). The mean hesitancy score was 29/50, and more than one-third of respondents were classified as highly hesitant. Knowing someone who died from COVID-19, trusting the government, perceiving local healthcare worker support, having comorbidities and higher socioeconomic status (electricity at home) were all associated with lower hesitancy. Main concerns focused on side effects, efficacy, safety, the pharmaceutical industry and distrust of government. Qualitative analysis highlighted four themes: information, trust, clinical concerns, and misinformation/false beliefs.

Governance, Security, Poverty, Health

This article examines the real impact of United Nations peacekeeping missions on conflict resolution in Sub-Saharan Africa. Drawing on liberal institutionalism and conflict transformation theory, the study uses a qualitative, case-based approach relying on secondary data. It evaluates four major missions: MONUC/MONUSCO in the DRC, UNMISS in South Sudan, MINUSMA in Mali, and MINUSCA in the Central African Republic. Findings indicate mixed outcomes: although UN missions contributed to reducing open hostilities, protecting civilians, and facilitating humanitarian aid, they often failed to address root causes of conflict, foster political reconciliation, or establish sustainable peace. Key challenges include ambiguous mandates, limited resources, weak local ownership, and complex political environments. The study concludes that while UN peacekeeping remains essential for stabilisation, its effectiveness is constrained by structural and operational limitations. It recommends clearer mandates, stronger collaboration with the African Union, greater investment in peacebuilding, and enhanced local participation.

Governance, Peace, Conflict, Crisis management, Mediation, Crisis

This cross-sectional study assesses the quality of maternal and newborn health care in Niger using a nationally representative sample of 110 public facilities (integrated health centres, district hospitals and mother–child hospitals) and 2,153 women. A quality-of-care tool, co-developed with the Ministry of Health, combined five components: health facility survey, partograph review, healthcare provider knowledge tests, client exit interviews, and direct observation of antenatal and postnatal consultations. Findings show important structural gaps, with incomplete access to electricity, water and transport, and uneven availability of key tests and medicines. Partographs are used for most deliveries but are often poorly completed. Screening and integrated management of preeclampsia, anaemia and infectious diseases (HIV, syphilis, tuberculosis, malaria) remain suboptimal, especially in postnatal care. While overt mistreatment is rare, communication gaps are frequent: results and diagnoses are not consistently explained to women. The authors call for targeted investments in supplies, competency-based training, respectful care and stronger integration of services at each contact with pregnant and postpartum women.

Governance, Women, Health, Enfant

According to the 13 October 2025 report, this study examines the political, social and technological dimensions of civil registration systems in Côte d’Ivoire, Mauritania, and Chad. It highlights civil registration as a core infrastructure of citizenship, enabling access to rights but also functioning as a mechanism of exclusion. The report details the “social life of documents,” showing how identity papers are used strategically, how administrative inequalities persist, and how bureaucratic violence at service counters reinforces marginalisation. It also warns against the politicisation of civil registry systems, especially when civil registration, nationality, and elections become entangled. The study analyses the rise of biometric technologies, which promise efficiency but create new vulnerabilities, including surveillance risks and technological dependency. Finally, it outlines reform pathways: depoliticising civil registration, expanding citizen access, increasing transparency, fostering universal inclusion, and strengthening digital sovereignty.

Politics, Political party, State, Governance, Natural ressources, Justice, Gold, Public Administration, Social, Inclusion, Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS), water, Biometrics, Identity