Borders and Conflicts in North and West Africa
This publication examines the role of border regions in shaping patterns of violence
since the end of the 1990s in North and West Africa. Using the innovative OECD Spatial
Conflict Dynamics indicator (SCDi), the report looks at the growing relationship between
political violence and borderlands at the regional level, by analysing more than 170
000 violent events between January 1997 and June 2021 and through the exploration
of case studies in the Central and Eastern Sahel. Violence in border regions is both
more intense in terms of the number of victims and more diffuse geographically than
ever before. This report combines quantitative data on the location of violent events
and victims, their mapping over time and space, and an analysis of the actors in conflict
to answer three crucial questions i) Are borderlands more violent than other spaces?
ii) Has the intensity of violence in border regions increased over time? iii) Are
some borderlands more violent than others? The growing importance and complexity of
transnational conflicts and transnational violent groups in North and West Africa
calls for a more place-based analysis in order to create better tailored and more
flexible policy options.
Published on February 19, 2022Also available in: French
In series:West African Studiesview more titles