Learning the Lessons. Assessing the response to the 2012 food crisis in the Sahel to build resilience for the future.

In 2012, the Sahel was once again hit by a severe food crisis affecting
more than 18 million people. The region’s governments, donors and aid
agencies were determined to avoid mistakes made in the response to
previous crises. But while their response was better in many respects,
there were still some critical shortcomings. The poorest families and
communities suffered most, as deep-seated inequalities made some
people far more vulnerable than others. While continuing to address the
enormous humanitarian and recovery needs in the region, we also must
all learn the lessons from the 2012 response and develop a new model
that will allow better prevention and management of future crises. The
growing momentum around the concept of resilience offers considerable
potential to achieve this, but only if all actors work together to turn
rhetoric into action that brings lasting improvements for the poorest
communities across the Sahel.