President Macron expected in Nouakchott to push for security measures in the Sahel
French President Emmanuel Macron is scheduled to arrive in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Monday to attend the African Union summit.
Macron is expected to make a push for security measures in the troubled Sahel region, with particular focus on the formation and deployment of the G5 Sahel Force.
The G5 Sahel force will made up of 5000 troops from Burkina Faso, Mali, Chad, Mauritania and Niger to fight jihadi groups and people trafficking in the region.
The force was supposed to be up and running by March but it’s been delayed and is short of cash – a major worry for Macron, who’s thrown his weight behind the project, which is partly aimed at allowing France to pull back its own troops in the region.
Macron also comes fresh from a European Union summit which agreed to set up processing centres for asylum seekers seeking to reach Europe on African soil – including some AU member countries like Niger.
No country has yet agreed to host them.
After completing his agenda in Nouakchott, The French president will then visit Nigeria.
This trip to Nigeria is seen as a rare choice for a French President, as past leaders have tended to focus their African trips on France’s former colonies. Macron wants to show he’s looking beyond that.
He’s set to announce an African culture season that will be held in France in 2020, at a star studded evening in Lagos featuring Fela Kuti, Youssou N’Dour and Angelique Kidjo.
