In recent times, various coups, insurgencies and foreign interventions took place in many Sahel countries, especially across former Françafrique. This is exacerbated by very high birthrates across the region causing a rapid increase in population. Although geographically located in the tropics, the Sahel doesn't have a tropical climate.Įspecially in the western Sahel there are frequent shortages of food and water due to its very high government corruption and the semi-arid climate. The Sahel has a hot steppe climate and stretches across the southernmost latitudes of North Africa between the Atlantic Ocean and the Red Sea. It is the transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north.
The Sahel region ( / s ə ˈ h ɛ l/ from Arabic ساحل ( sāḥil ) 'coast, shore') or Sahelian acacia savanna is a biogeographic region in Africa.
