Sahel Prosperity is Key to Africa’s Stability, Declares Togo’s Faure Gnassingbé

In a powerful address that reframed regional development as a continental imperative, Togolese Council President Faure Gnassingbé declared that the prosperity of the Sahel region is an essential prerequisite for stability across Africa.

Faure Gnassingb during his address.

A Continental Challenge with Global Implications

“The development of the Sahel is, in reality, a continental and global issue,” stated President Gnassingbé during his keynote speech at the opening of the United Arab Emirates-Chad Forum on Trade and Investment in Abu Dhabi on Monday, November 10, 2025. “The prosperity of the Sahel is a prerequisite for stability across all of Africa.”

He elaborated on the critical stakes, noting that “what is at stake here, through Chad, concerns food security, climate resilience, and the cohesion of our societies.”

Strategic Vision for Regional Transformation

This high-level meeting embodies an ambitious strategic vision centered around seventeen investment programs. It aims to mobilize significant resources to transform Chad’s assets into a lever for regional, and even African, growth.

Among the special guests of the highest order was Faure Essoszimna Gnassingbé. His presence illustrates the spirit of openness and solidarity of Togolese diplomacy, as well as Togo’s commitment to South-South cooperation, sustainable development, and African integration.

Building Continental Connections

In his address, Faure Gnassingbé congratulated Marshal Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno for the invitation to the Forum, which reflects the quality of the friendship and cooperation between Lomé and N’Djamena.

He praised the Pan-African vision championed by this ambitious meeting, which highlights the foundations of a continental transformation based on connection, sovereignty, and endogenous investment.

He emphasized, “What Chad is initiating today extends far beyond its borders. It is an African ambition being expressed—that of an Africa that plans, invests, and connects with itself. This vision speaks to every one of us.”

The Geostrategic Heart of Africa’s Future

The Council President also stressed the Forum’s geostrategic significance, which lies at the very heart of the Sahel’s integrated development. To that end, he shared with the attending African leaders and investors four conditions that give full strength to the Chadian initiative.

‘A Courageous, Lucid, and Coherent Choice’

According to Faure Gnassingbé, the initiative led by Chad opens a new era of regional integration where transformation is achieved through connection, via the Chad Connection 2030 plan. This plan is founded on energy, logistical, economic, and social infrastructure, human capital, and governance.

He continued, stating that this approach aligns with Togo’s vision of an Africa of sovereign corridors, “where every reform builds trust and where every project generates value on African soil.”

“It is a courageous, lucid, and coherent choice to bet on comprehensive connection, whether it be energy, logistics, economics, or social. This vision aligns with the one we share in Togo: that of a continent where every corridor becomes a link of sovereignty, where every reform builds trust, and where every project generates value on African territory,” he added.

Geostrategic Significance of Sahel Development

The Council President revisited the geostrategic importance of Sahel development, which he described as an issue linked to security and stability concerns.

Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno during his address.

“The development of the Sahel is, in reality, a continental and global issue. The prosperity of the Sahel is a prerequisite for stability across all of Africa. What is at stake here, through Chad, concerns food security, climate resilience, and the cohesion of our societies,” he stated.

This integrated approach to development links economic objectives with human imperatives and will make the Sahel a space of peace, solutions, and investment.

Mobilizing African Capital for Continental Growth

In this context, the Council President called for the creation of a coalition of investors to make the Sahel an engine of continental growth: “We—and I encourage you in this—must build a genuine coalition of African, Arab, and international investors around this initiative. Together, we can make the Sahel a continental common good, an engine of growth, and not a blind spot of development.”

‘To Connect is to Link Our People, Our Infrastructure, and Our Markets’

The Council President then placed the concept of connection at the heart of African sovereignty, noting that the Chadian initiative resonates with what other African nations are building: an interconnected, sovereign continent that is master of its own technological and economic choices.

“Connecting Africa is also about building collective sovereignty. The word ‘connection’ aptly summarizes our common ambition. To connect is to link our people, our infrastructure, and our markets. It is about reducing physical distances, but it is also about reducing the distances of trust. Every road, every power line, every fiber optic cable brings not only prosperity but also stability and dignity,” he declared.

Togo’s Commitment to Regional Partnership

With this perspective, Togo intends to strengthen its partnership with Chad to contribute to this new strategy for the continent’s integrated development.

“Togo stands alongside Chad on this path, convinced that every new connection in Africa strengthens the security and dignity of all Africans,” clarified the Council President.

Financial Empowerment of the Continent

Finally, Council President Faure Essoszimna Gnassingbé advocated for the financial empowerment of the continent.

“Africa itself must mobilize its own capital to finance its future. The resources exist on our continent. They are in our sovereign wealth funds, our pension funds, our domestic savings, and our diaspora. We must now channel them towards productive and shared investments.”

This also requires clear governance, a stable legal framework, and a set of fiscal discipline mechanisms capable of attracting private capital while preserving public sovereignty.

“It is on this condition that our partners will see us not as mere beneficiaries, but as builders.”

Conclusion: A Unified Vision for Africa’s Future

In conclusion, the Council President invited the international community to support the Chad Connection 2030 project, which is not just a national program but a promise made to all of Africa—the promise of a continent in solidarity, master of its own destiny, and confident in its own strengths.

For his part, Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno welcomed the partners’ endorsement of the Connection Plan 2030 initiative. He particularly expressed his gratitude to the Council President for his notable participation and commitment to this noble vision.

The Forum featured high-level panels focusing on key development levers, including natural resources, industrialization, infrastructure, human capital, and emerging technologies.

These discussions helped strengthen synergies between participating states, international financial institutions, and private investors, and promoted projects with high socio-economic impact and continental integration.

Source: Savoir News/Presidency of the Council