NGOs established in the Sahel are warning of the end of public development aid decided by France. Children will be the first affected, according to them.
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This is a double sanction for thousands of Burkinabé children deprived of French aid. On this International Children’s Rights Day, Monday November 20, 2023, NGOs established particularly in the Sahel are sounding the alarm. The end of public development aid, which France paid them, will put thousands of children in danger. A shame when Emmanuel Macron wanted to place his second five-year term under the sign of child protection. The thirty French associations present in Burkina will in any case not be able to last long without a questioning of France’s policy in the Sahel.
The NGOs understand that France should stop helping the Burkinabe state. But for France to stop helping NGOs which work directly with populations is much more difficult to hear, particularly for those who take care of tens of thousands of children on a daily basis. This is the case of the Asmae association, the association of Sister Emmanuelle. Three of its programs directly aimed at young people are affected. “That means more than 11,000 children who will not be supported in the coming years, explains its director, Adrien Sallez. The announced end of public development assistance means projects are canceled and new projects will never exist.”
Displaced children among the most directly affected
Children are the first victims of French disengagement in the Sahel according to Adrien Sallez, who specifies that the minors most in danger find themselves the most exposed. “There is a form of double punishment. On the one hand, these are extremely vulnerable children, particularly those who are internally displaced who have fled armed groups in their village. And in addition, the projects that are being carried out today to support these children, to allow them to access their rights, will be arrested.” AFD, the French development agency, supported 43 projects last year in Burkina Faso. Contacted on this subject, the Quai d’Orsay did not wish to specify the French position.