COP30: The cautionary tale of the Sahel’s Great Green Wall
[...]
Only a rusted sign remains, its large green lettering the last reminder that the plantation once belonged to a dream larger than life: Africa's Great Green Wall.
[...]
Five years away from its self-imposed deadline, billions of dollars have been spent and billions more pledged, yet most of the Great Green Wall remains barren.
[...]
A symbol of pan-African cooperation, critics say, has become yet another cautionary tale for the limitations of top-down international aid in Africa
[...]
Annah Zhu, an assistant professor of environmental policy who recently published a large-scale study on the Great Green Wall, argues that even when funding does come to the national agencies, the need to cater to international funders means it often prioritises projects that fit into a "Western imaginary of Africa", such as tree-planting and the creation of fenced reserves.
[...]
"The Great Green Wall is more Western-driven than African-led," said Zhu. "Its power is its ability to attract funding in Europe and the United States. The problem is that's all it does."
[...]
Along the length of the Wall, projects have failed because of poor planning, inadequate funding, or the restrictions of having to work within the funding cycles and requirements of international donors, researchers note.
[...]