Niger President says regional armies are outmatched by tech-savvy jihadists

SENEGAL: West African Armies need a new strategy to combat the growing jihadist threat because improved technologies have given militants the upper hand as they seek to destabilise the Sahel region, Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum said on Monday.

Groups linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State have expanded their reach in the central Sahel since 2017, staging regular attacks that have killed thousands of people and displaced millions across Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

“Technological advances are now allowing rebel groups to access a number of tools which used to be the privilege of state forces,” said Bazoum, noting the use of satellite phones, motorcycles which make them more mobile than the army, and advanced weapons smuggled from Libya.

“Sahel states must adopt a military strategy adapted to the challenges of their techniques to make the war less unbalanced,” he said.

He was speaking at the Dakar Peace and Security Forum which opened on Monday in Senegal’s capital, bringing together several heads of state and European ministers to discuss stability and cooperation in post-pandemic Africa.

Senegalese President Macky Sall said budget-tightening by many African countries meant their armies had become less well-equipped to counter the growing jihadist threat in recent years. “Security is priceless, but it comes at a cost,” he said in his introductory speech.

– THE PENINSULA