With the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), world leaders made a bold pledge in 2015 to leave no one behind on the path of development by 2030. Half-way to the target date, some 22 countries…

Samuel Kofi Tetteh Baah, Christoph Lakner, Umar Serajuddin |

Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced low economic growth per capita, a very slow decline in poverty incidence, and the number of people living in extreme poverty has been rising steadily. As a…

Johannes Hoogeveen, Johan A. Mistiaen, Haoyu Wu |

Across the Sahel, young women are key contributors to the socio-economic development of their communities and countries.

Eleonora Cavagnero, Rohini P. Pande, Judith F. Helzner |

Like many of its neighbors, Benin is experiencing growing threats of conflict. The country’s proximity to Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, and Mali—all experiencing violent extremism—makes it…

Solene Rougeaux, Saint-Martin Kodjovi Mongan Agbeshie |

School leadership plays a major role in shaping the quality of education, acting as a strategic lever to foster conducive learning conditions for students. Despite this, the characteristics of…

Nathalie Guilbert, Carolina Alban Conto, Fabricia Devignes, Juan D. Barón |

Community-driven development (CDD) is a global development approach that emphasizes the active involvement and participation of local communities in decision-making. Its participatory processes…

Varalakshmi Vemuru, Ozan Sevimli, Sana Zia, Audrey Sacks |

The Grand Nokoué metropolis of Benin has struggled with a lack of services for safe disposal and treatment of human waste for years. A new fecal sludge plant, built in Sèmè-Kpodji with support…

Mariam Sou, Xavier Chauvot De Beauchene, Kevin Ahouandjinou |

Road crashes happen in a moment but can leave lasting damage. This is a global problem with a high human and financial cost. Every year, approximately 1.35 million people are killed and 50 million…

Shomik Mehndiratta, Sudeshna Mitra |

The West African Economic and Monetary Union community, which comprises Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo, is facing a deficit of decent housing of…

Mazen Bouri |

Africa is not on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal of eradicating extreme poverty. While many countries were successful in reducing poverty during the years before the pandemic,…

Camilla Holmemo, Christian Bodewig, Robert S. Chase, Suleiman Namara |