• The Green Climate Fund approves $222 million for FAO to launch the SURAGGWA program in eight Sahelian countries.
• The initiative focuses on restoring degraded lands and developing value chains for climate-resilient non-timber forest products.
• The program aims to boost incomes and food security for agro-pastoral communities vulnerable to drought.

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) has allocated $222 million to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to implement the “Scaling-Up Resilience in Africa’s Great Green Wall” (SURAGGWA) program across eight Sahelian countries. These countries are Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal, all particularly vulnerable to climate change.

The announcement was made during the 42nd session of the GCF Council, held from June 30 to July 3 in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. According to an official FAO statement, the program’s core objective is to restore degraded lands and strengthen climate-resilient agricultural value chains, directly benefiting agro-pastoral and pastoral communities across the Sahel.

Non-Timber Forest Products Drive the Strategic Focus

“The initiative will seek to scale up successful land restoration practices using a diversity of native species to increase livelihood resilience while also sequestering carbon. It will develop value chains for climate-resilient and low-emission non-timber forest products, supporting the livelihoods and food security of vulnerable communities,” the FAO explained.

Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are central to the SURAGGWA strategy. These products, which do not require cutting down trees, include goods such as gum arabic, shea nuts, and honey. According to the FAO, NTFPs represent about 3% of West Africa’s GDP and are a crucial source of income for rural households in the Sahel.

For example, in Burkina Faso, data from the National Institute of Statistics and Demography show that the shea sector alone generated CFA60.9 billion ($103.5 million) in 2023 from exports of shea nuts and butter.

The FAO emphasizes that scaling up sustainable NTFP value chains will help stabilize economies and strengthen food security in the Sahel, where agriculture remains highly vulnerable to drought. Official data indicate that over 90% of farmers in the region rely on rainfed agriculture, making them especially exposed to the impacts of climate variability.

This article was initially published in French by Stéphanas Assocle

Edited in English by Ange Jason Quenum