EU Africa leaders drum up support for impoverished Sahel
Sahel
European Union leaders meet Friday with counterparts from West Africa in a show of support for the impoverished Sahel region that has fallen prey to extremists and is a key transit point for migrants heading to Europe.
Some are likely to pledge funds for the G5  Sahel  security force launched a year ago. It joins a number of security efforts that include France's largest overseas military operation  a U.N. peacekeeping mission in Mali and a U.S. presence of about 800 troops in Niger  where four soldiers were killed in an October ambush.
Security has deteriorated in the vast  Sahel  since 2011  with attacks by a variety of extremist groups a growing occurrence. Both extremist fighters and people seeking better lives in Europe move through the long  porous borders.
 The 5 000-strong G5 Sahel force  is seeking more than 400 million euros ($500 million) for  its  mission along mostly desert borders  including near Libya  the main jumping-off point for migrants bound for Italy.
The EU is investing more than 8 billion euros in development aid in the Sahel for 2014-2020. Part of that is self-interest as the EU seeks to ease its refugee burden by tackling the root causes of migration.
While migrant arrivals through Libya have dropped  more than 120 000 people still left there last year. Many die in the grueling crossing of  the Sahel and Sahara  before  they  can even take  their  chances in often overcrowded traffickers' boats on the Mediterranean.
European Union leaders meet Friday with counterparts from West Africa in a show of support for the impoverished Sahel region that has fallen prey to extremists and is a key transit point for migrants heading to Europe.
Some are likely to pledge funds for the G5  [TGT]security force launched a year ago. It joins a number of security efforts that include France's largest overseas military operation  a U.N. peacekeeping mission in Mali and a U.S. presence of about 800 troops in Niger  where four soldiers were killed in an October ambush.
Security has deteriorated in the vast  Sahel  since 2011  with attacks by a variety of extremist groups a growing occurrence. Both extremist fighters and people seeking better lives in Europe move through the long  porous borders.
 [TGT]is seeking more than 400 million euros ($500 million) for  [TGT]  mission along mostly desert borders  including near Libya  the main jumping-off point for migrants bound for Italy.
The EU is investing more than 8 billion euros in development aid in [TGT] for 2014-2020. Part of that is self-interest as the EU seeks to ease its refugee burden by tackling the root causes of migration.
While migrant arrivals through Libya have dropped  more than 120 000 people still left there last year. Many die in the grueling crossing of  the Sahel and Sahara  before  they  can even take  their  chances in often overcrowded traffickers' boats on the Mediterranean.