Togo officially launched its new strategy for the Sahel on Saturday, April 18, at a high-level meeting in Lomé, setting out a fresh diplomatic and security framework for engagement with Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger through 2028, as the West African coastal state repositions itself amid sweeping geopolitical shifts in the region.
The new roadmap replaces the strategy adopted in 2021, which had guided Togo’s engagement in the Sahel over the past four years. It comes amid sweeping geopolitical shifts in West Africa, including a persistent terrorist threat in the Sahel that is now spreading to Gulf of Guinea countries, and the creation of the Alliance of Sahel States following the withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Championed by Faure Gnassingbe, President of the Council, the strategy aims to adapt Togo’s engagement to emerging realities while strengthening its contribution to regional stability and cooperation between Sahel countries and those of the Gulf of Guinea.
The new strategy is structured around five complementary pillars, including counterterrorism and sub-regional defence and security policy, and diplomacy and regional and international cooperation.
The Lomé meeting brought together representatives of the Togolese government, governments of Sahel states, special envoys for the Sahel, and representatives of sub-regional, regional and international organisations including the United Nations. Mali’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Abdoulaye Diop, described the new strategy as demonstrating Togo’s determination to adapt its engagement to new geopolitical and security realities in order to strengthen regional stability and cooperation between Sahel states and coastal nations in a rapidly changing environment.
Since tensions between the Alliance of Sahel States and ECOWAS first emerged, Togo has positioned itself as a key player on both the political and economic fronts. The country plays a central role in facilitating trade with Sahel states, which rely on the port of Lomé for supplies across multiple sectors.
Togolese authorities stressed that the terrorist threat continues to persist in the Sahel and is gradually spreading toward the coastal states of the Gulf of Guinea, making further action for regional stability a pressing priority.
Through the initiative, Togo aims to consolidate its role as a key actor in regional dialogue, capable of bringing different stakeholders around a shared vision of peace and cooperation, with expected outcomes including improved understanding of the new strategy, identification of concrete paths for collaboration, and strengthened coordination among actors involved in Sahel stabilisation.
