Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have come together to form the Alliance of Sahel States. Each is ruled by a military government – and that’s led to a split from the larger West African regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

The three military rulers have pledged to support each other against outside threats and internal security challenges.

But can they find success by going it alone? Or will a divided Sahel make regional challenges even more difficult to tackle?

Presenter:

Mohammed Jamjoom

Guests:

Erwan de Cherisey – Specialist in African armed forces who has been embedded with military operations in Cameroon, Nigeria and the Gambia

Ahmedou Ould Abdallah – Former foreign minister of Mauritania and president of the Centre for Strategies and Security for the Sahel Sahara

Alkassoum Abdourahmane – Permanent secretary of the Sahel International Solidarity Forum and a specialist in humanitarian and development issues in the Sahel region