Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso have already faced years of unrest and climate distress. But growing food insecurity and conflict have compounded pressures, raising concerns in Brussels and Geneva about an increase in attempts to reach Europe.
The EU and Niger have announced plans to work together more closely to bring an end to the activities of people smugglers. A new initiative launched last week is intended to deepen the cooperation between the two. This comes as Niger's role in combatting terrorism in the region is also increasing.
The UN migration agency IOM confirmed that 44 West African migrants were rescued in the Nigerien desert on July 6. They were on their way to Libya.
The head of the EU's border agency Frontex issued a warning, saying that the bloc must prepare for a fresh wave of migrants coming to Europe, as people across the globe could be uprooted due to a food crisis exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine.
A group of ten migrants was found dead in Niger, not far from the Libyan border, confirmed the Nigerian military. Authorities are investigating the cause of death but thirst is one supposition.
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has strongly criticized the treatment of refugees and migrants in the border region of Niger, Algeria and Libya. With thousands of migrants being forcefully deported to Niger's Sahel region each year, the aid organization blamed the EU for its policy of strengthening border controls in African nations in a bid to keep migrants and refugees away.
Alhassane came to Italy as a refugee from Niger. An Italian family decided to host him in their home, enabling him to study to become a healthcare worker.
Two Nigerian migrants have taken a case against Italy and Libya to a UN Committee. The two women, with the help of a legal rights association in Italy, claim that Italy and Libya failed to protect their human rights as women and left them at risk of trafficking, exploitation and abuse.
More than 170 asylum seekers have been evacuated from Libya to Niger with the help of the UNHCR. This marks the first such repatriation flight from the war-torn country in over a year.
Libya's coast guard has intercepted 280 migrants on five boats on their journey to Europe. They are now due to be sent back to their respective countries of origins.
A group of 91 migrants was returned from Libya to Niger by UN migration agency IOM and Libyan authorities on Wednesday. Most of them were women and children.
Countries hit by ecological damage and conflict are trapped in a vicious cycle where one problem reinforces the other. And climate change is expected to make things worse.