Sahel Military Governments : What Balance Sheet?

The Confederation of Sahel States also known as the Alliance of Sahel States or AES Confederation (AES) is a Confederation that was established on July 6, 2024 by Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso. It originated as a mutual defense pact created on 16 September 2023 following the 2023 Nigerien crisis, in which the West African political bloc ECOWAS threatened to intervene militarily following a successful coup d'état in Niger earlier that year. All three member States are former members of ECOWAS and currently under the control of military regimes after a string of successful coups. The 2021 Malian coup d'état, the September 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état, and the 2023 Niger coup d'état are major turning points in the political history of these people.
Closed to four years after stating their goals which are, to pool resources to build energy and communications infrastructure, establish a common market, implement a monetary union under proposed currency, allow free movement of persons, enable industrialization, and invest in agriculture, mines and the energy sector, with the end goal of federalizing into a single sovereign State, many questions are being asked with regards to their capability to attain the said objectives. Among the numerous issues on their table begging for solutions is the burning issue of insecurity in the area. Before the series of military take-overs in the Sahel region, these countries had been facing security unrest due to the presence of several jihadists groups. Despite numerous attempts by the international community to stamp out the phenomenon through international peacekeeping and dialogue, their efforts have been fruitless. The coming to power of the various military governments a few years ago, re-ignited hope of seeing the re-capture of territories under jihadists. 
Though much is still to be on the field despite massive mobilization by the military leaders, AES countries now control some strategic towns and villages, enabling the civilian population to gradually return. The incessant barbaric acts of the jihadists is something of the past in some areas in the Sahel. The displacements of thousands of people and the enormous mate...