The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has expressed worry over the displacement crisis in the Central Sahel, which has displaced almost four million people in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, including over 818,000 refugees and asylum-seekers.

The UNHCR, in a statement on Friday, said the crisis in the region is forcing more families to flee, eroding livelihoods and limiting opportunities for displaced people to rebuild their lives.

The agency said, “In Mali, the vast majority of refugees are from neighbouring Burkina Faso. In Koro, in the Bandiagara region, some 86,000 Burkinabè refugees had sought safety as of July 2026, following successive waves of displacement since 2025. 

“Among them are more than 14,000 children and 6,000 women identified as being at particular risk. The refugee population is now approaching the size of the local host community, placing mounting pressure on already scarce land and water resources, overstretched health services and limited livelihood opportunities.”

The UN agency said climate-related shocks—droughts, erratic rainfall, and flooding—are disrupting agricultural production and destroying homes and infrastructure, compounding pressure on displaced communities already struggling with insecurity.

UNHCR said that while longer-term political solutions are pursued, there is a a greater need to support refugees, internally displaced people, and the communities hosting them. 

The agency insisted that more resources are urgently needed to protect those most at risk, sustain access to basic services, including education, and expand livelihood opportunities, in line with UNHCR’s 50 by 35 vision, which aims to advance self-reliance and lasting solutions for refugees in protracted displacement by 2035.

“In Koro, agricultural cooperative initiatives bringing together Burkinabè refugees and host-community members have helped expand cultivated land from 21 hectares in 2025 to 45 hectares in 2026, improving food production and household incomes. 

“In Burkina Faso, similar support in Kaya is helping internally displaced people and host communities increase food production, reduce post-harvest losses and generate income,” it said.

The agency said that although the efforts remain insufficient compared with the scale of displacement, they show what can be achieved when people forced to flee are given the means to rebuild their lives while longer-term solutions are sought.

“Scaling up these initiatives will require sustained investment to strengthen national systems, expand livelihood opportunities and support displaced people and the communities hosting them.”

The UNHCR said it is worried that the crisis is also increasingly extending beyond the Central Sahel. It noted that in 2026, almost 500,000 Burkinabè refugees and asylum-seekers sought safety in neighbouring countries, up from over 300,000 at the end of 2025. 

“Many have fled to West Africa’s coastal countries, including Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Togo. More than 334,000 Malians are also refugees abroad, while over 106,000 Nigeriens are recorded as refugees and asylum-seekers in neighbouring countries.”

“At the same time, severe funding shortfalls are weakening the humanitarian response just as needs continue to grow,” the UNHCR said. “As of September 2026, UNHCR’s response in the Sahel was only 27 per cent funded, against the $329.6 million required, forcing difficult choices over which essential services and activities can be sustained.”

The UNHCR urged sustained political engagement to address the insecurity driving displacement.