Climate change and Sahelian wetlands : accelerating migrations?

Résumé 0

Wetlands in the Sahel are recognised for the many services they provide to the people who depend on them to a greater or lesser extent. They are closely linked to the climate, so is there a link between climate change and migration? Using Lake Fitri in central Chad as an example, we recall the long history of migration in the Sahel and its importance for the resilience of societies in the face of environmental and political crises. While the exceptional floods in the Fitri have had an amplifying effect on territorial conflicts and led to unprecedented inter-community conflicts, they were simmering because of a latent crisis of governance. The choice of departures and destinations is determined above all by the local history of power games, gender relations and opportunities within migratory networks, but also by the national and international geopolitical context which, since the 2010s, has redirected migration towards distant and dangerous destinations.