Mali is entering a demographic turning point, with its population set to double by 2050. The country faces both the promise of a young, dynamic workforce and the risk of overwhelming its social and economic infrastructure.

Residents of Chami have protested severe water shortages that have left entire neighborhoods without supply for days, underscoring growing stress on Mauritania’s fragile urban infrastructure.

Mauritania is facing outbreaks of diphtheria and Rift Valley fever that have killed 36 people in recent weeks. Hundreds of cases have been recorded across several regions, exposing gaps in health capacity and the impact of seasonal rains that heighten disease spread in the Sahel.

Nearly 4 million people are now displaced across the Sahel, the UN warns, as violence and collapsing services escalate a regional humanitarian crisis.