UN recognition spotlights WFP-led partnership restoring land and strengthening food security in the Sahel

Since 2018, the WFP-led initiative has worked with national governments, local communities and partners to improve livelihoods and food production for more than four million people, while rehabilitating more than 335,000 hectares of degraded land on the edge of the Sahara Desert and reducing communities' exposure to repeated shocks.

Announced during a high-level event at the seventeenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17) in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, the award places the Sahel initiative among three new World Restoration Flagships under the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which recognize large-scale and long-term examples of ecosystem restoration.

The Sahel Integrated Resilience Initiative combines land rehabilitation and ecosystem restoration with school meals, nutrition activities, support to smallholder farmers and capacity strengthening with local institutions.

“This recognition belongs first to the communities across the Sahel who are restoring their land, protecting their livelihoods and building a more dignified future in some of the world’s toughest conditions,” said Kinday Samba, WFP Regional Director for West and Central Africa. “WFP is proud to stand with them as this work is recognized, and grateful to the governments, partners and donors whose sustained commitment has helped make it possible.”

In Niger alone, WFP reached more than 1.4 million people in 2025 through integrated resilience interventions across hundreds of sites, making it WFP’s largest programme of its kind in the region. New evidence shows that these investments are up to 3.5 times more cost-effective than humanitarian response and could help avoid up to USD 9.7 billion in future humanitarian assistance needs by 2055.

In Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali and Mauritania, WFP reached more than 2.4 million people in 2025 through integrated resilience interventions across almost one thousand villages. Evidence from satellite-based monitoring shows that 75 percent of WFP resilience sites recorded improved soil and vegetation conditions. Among households participating in the initiative, the proportion requiring humanitarian food assistance between harvests fell from 44 percent in 2020/2021 to 33 percent in 2024/2025, indicating that participating households maintained or improved their food security.

The recognition comes as conflict and displacement, compounded by climate shocks, economic pressures and environmental degradation, continue to drive food insecurity across the Sahel. An estimated 7.4 million people across the region were projected to face Crisis levels of food insecurity or worse (IPC Phase 3 or above) during the June to August 2026 lean season.

Against this backdrop, governments across the Sahel are investing in longer-term solutions that strengthen local food systems, boost production and reduce dependence on humanitarian assistance. WFP is recognized as a key partner in supporting these national priorities, helping communities recover productive assets, preserve dignity and better withstand future shocks.

By 2030, the initiative aims to restore 475,000 hectares of land while supporting biodiversity, livelihoods and long-term food security. Sustained investment will be essential to expand these gains and help more Sahel communities thrive.

The Sahel Integrated Resilience Initiative is made possible thanks to its longstanding partnership with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), as well as Canada, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Switzerland and other partners.

                                                                        #         #          #

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

More information on the initiative can be found here and here.

Broadcast quality video footage can be downloaded here.

High resolution photos can be downloaded here.

Follow us on X, formerly Twitter, via @WFP_Africa, and on LinkedIn and Facebook