Project profile — Contributing to reduced weapons proliferation and promoting peaceful societies in the Sahel

• Mali (45.00%)
• Niger (10.00%)
• Burkina Faso (45.00%)

• Civilian peace-building, conflict prevention and resolution:
Civilian peace-building, conflict prevention and resolution (15220) (75.00%)
Reintegration and SALW control (15240) (25.00%)

• Gender equality (significant objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (not targeted)
• Participatory development and good governance (not targeted)
• Trade development (not targeted)
• Biodiversity (not targeted)
• Climate change mitigation (not targeted)
• Climate Change Adaptation (not targeted)
• Urban issues (not targeted)
• Desertification (not targeted)
• Children's issues (not targeted)
• Youth Issues (not targeted)
• Indigenous Issues (not targeted)
• Disability (not targeted)
• ICT as a tool for development (not targeted)
• Nutrition (not targeted)
• Disaster Risk Reduction(DRR) (not targeted)

This project aims to address the proliferation of small arms, light weapons and ammunition in the Sahel region that fuels armed violence, which in turn creates further demand for Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW). This project proposes an innovative two-faceted approach that complements previous and ongoing arms management activities funded by PSOPs and other donors to address this complex problem. Firstly, this approach mitigates the risk of diversion of state-held weapons and ammunition in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. Secondly, it addresses the impact of SALW on communities in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger by increasing knowledge of safe behaviour related to the threats of improvised landmines and explosive ordnance and identifying alternative sources of revenue for producers of handmade weapons. Mines Advisory Group works to improve stakeholders' abilities to include gender considerations and gender-sensitive initiatives in ammunition and weapons management activities. It seeks to understand SALW impact on communities through a gendered lens. Project activities include: (1) providing training and technical support for the destruction and disabling of weapons and ammunition; (2) increasing waste management of ammunition remnants; (3) providing technical support for the marking of weapons; (4) conducting a feasibility study on weapons tracing; (5) mitigating threats of explosive ordnance through education; (5) integrating gender considerations in arms management; (6) advocating for a national policy on the management of seized weapons; and (7) identifying alternate sources of income for artisanal weapons producers.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) reduced risks of SALW and munitions diversion from state-held stockpiles in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger; (2) improved ability of sector stakeholders in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger to develop quality, gender-sensitive initiatives to reduce SALW proliferation and promote peaceful societies; and (3) reduced risks posed by improvised landmines and explosive ordnance to non governmental organizations workers in Burkina Faso.

Results achieved as of March 2022 include: (1) trained 78 people in gender mainstreaming (including 24 women); (2) held a weapon marking training course for security personnel in Burkina Faso and in Mali for 15 staff of the Water and Forestry Department (three women and 12 men); (3) destroyed 586 Small Arms and Light Weapons and 52,107 Small Arms Ammunition in Burkina Faso; (4) marked 702 weapons, 588 in Burkina Faso and 114 in Mali; and (5) trained 128 personnel (114 men and 14 women) of the Burkina Faso security forces on the destruction of weapons.

• Proactive disclosure