AES Confederation: 10th APGMV Council of Ministers in Bamako, a turning point for the environment and Sahelian development

Gathered in Bamako on 26 June, the ministers of the member states of the Pan-African Agency for the Great Green Wall (APGMV) marked a crucial step in reviving a strategic continental project. This 10th ordinary session of the Council of Ministers, chaired by the Malian Prime Minister, Major General Abdoulaye Maïga, is part of the political momentum driven by the heads of state of the Confederation of Sahel States (AES), who are working with determination to breathe new life, vision, and effectiveness into public action in the Sahel.

Under Mali’s leadership of the Agency, and with the active participation of Burkina Faso’s Ministry of Environment, the meeting enabled concrete progress on several key fronts. The adoption of planning and management documents, the establishment of a transparent process for recruiting the new Executive Secretary, the review of an updated continental strategy aligned with the African Union’s orientations, and the planning of the future headquarters in Nouakchott demonstrate a renewed governance rooted in sovereignty and African priorities.

This ministerial summit goes beyond administrative matters. It embodies the strong political ambition to restore degraded ecosystems and build an inclusive green economy. In a Sahel region long weakened by desertification and poverty, the Great Green Wall represents a strategic and structural response, driven by states that are taking charge of their collective destiny. It offers concrete solutions for food security by promoting soil regeneration, sustainable resource management, and economic diversification.

Through this Pan-African project, the leaders of the AES, particularly those of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, reaffirm their vision of a resilient and sovereign Sahel. They are building a future where youth and women find opportunities in green jobs within a stabilized and ecologically restored territory.

The 10th session of the APGMV, on the eve of the next Conference of Heads of State, confirms that the ecological and socio-economic transformation of the Sahel is well underway — and it is above all Sahelian-led.