By Emilie Gay

In the Sahel region, gender inequalities persist and contribute significantly to instability. The Gender Equality Index gave the region a score of 32.4%, revealing a 67.6% gap between men and women in terms of economic participation, education and political representation [1]. While these figures certainly highlight a significant difference, they are insufficient to grasp what it means to live within these inequalities. By writing Coeur du Sahel (2022),Cameroonian author and feminist activist Djaïli Amadou Amal transforms these political data into tangible reality. Through the story of Faydé, she shows that gender inequality is not separate from the Sahelian crisis: it is one of its fundamental principles. 

Coeur du Sahel is not only a social novel; it can also be read as a political testimony. The author explores how poverty, insecurity, climate crisis, and institutional marginalisation contribute to gender differences. Throughout the novel, readers learn to humanise reported data: an unstable region linked to systematic exclusion. 

Faydé, a young woman from a mountain village in Cameroon’s Far North region, decides to leave her family to pursue her ambitions of working as a domestic servant in Maroua, the nearest city. She hopes to financially support her family by providing for their basic needs. Her departure is not driven by a desire for emancipation, but rather by economic necessity. In her village, harsh weather and increasing insecurity make life difficult for the family. Her mother, Kondem, had also tried to find work in the city before giving up. 

In the Sahel, women are the most vulnerable to life’s hardships. They are particularly exposed to poverty and precarious employment. They face constant obstacles, particularly in accessing land, credit, and formal employment [1]. Faydé’s choice is therefore not exceptional; it is part of a broader political and economic context. It illustrates how women try to carve out a place for themselves in a society where they are constantly excluded or neglected. Women are thus pushed towards precarious, more accessible sectors, such as domestic work, which is often informal and poorly protected. 

The novel thus denounces a central reality: the economic fragility of the Sahel is gendered. Djaïli Amadou Amal suggests that this vulnerability is not coincidental, but rooted in persistent social and institutional structures. 

The limitations related to education in the Sahel are profound. The gaps in school enrollment between men and women continue to widen as the level of education increases. Girls’ school dropout rates are particularly high upon entering secondary school [1]. This reality severely limits women’s career aspirations. Although the novel does not focus entirely on education, Faydé’s limited future and ambition to work as a domestic worker rather than pursuing her schooling clearly demonstrate its constraints. 

According to the United Nations, the Sahel region is experiencing increasing violence, forced displacement, and poverty, depriving many women and girls of their rights to education and safety [2]. In some areas of the Sahel, schools are forced to close due to insecurity or extremist control. 

Women in the Sahel also suffer from political marginalisation and a lack of representation. Women remain underrepresented at the executive, judicial, and legislative levels. In the G5 Sahel countries, only 20% of ministerial positions are held by women [1]. In Niger, only 14% of participants in recent institutional reforms are women [2]. 

In Coeur du Sahel, this political exclusion is not direct but rather subtle and pervasive throughout different aspects of society. Faydé’s life is framed by this hierarchy, both domestic and social. The absence of political space remains evident throughout the work. By focusing on female voices, Djaïli Amadou Amal subtly denounces the political and social exclusion of women. While institutions conceal women’s representation, the novel restores their visibility. 

Political, climatic, and security fragility contribute significantly to the weakening of the Sahel regions. The United Nations reports a substantial rate of abduction of women and girls: the number has more than doubled in the last eighteen months [2]. Mali is cited as an example to support this fact: 90% of women and girls are affected by violence, often including female genital mutilation [2]. 

The novel Coeur du Sahel does not directly mention the extremist violence suffered by women, yet its presence is constant. Insecurity influences economic conditions as well as social dynamics. Women are often the ones who bear the brunt of political instability : displacement, early or forced marriages, exclusion from public spaces. Through Faydé’s story, the author denounces how women’s bodies and work become the refuge of social and economic tensions. The vulnerability of women is presented in the work as a central element of the Sahelian crisis. 

Many international organisations are trying to initiate change in the lives of women in the Sahel : “Investing (…) on society as a whole” [1]. Some projects are launched to support girls’ education, others for gender-sensitive agricultural programs, and still others for local governance, all testifying to this growing awareness. 

However, the very reason Coeur du Sahel was written is that inequalities persist, and public policies alone are insufficient to transform present social norms. The book only plays a complementary role. By personifying statistics, the novel pushes the reader to consider the reality of political decisions and institutional failures. The novel thus reminds us that geopolitical crises are not abstract, but rather central. They manifest themselves in individual stories, forced displacements, and conflicting aspirations. Djaïli Amadou Amal demonstrates that gender is indeed present in the regions of the contemporary Sahel. 

Coeur du Sahel is not merely a literary narrative; it is a political reading of the Sahelian territory, aiming to reveal to readers the life of Faydé; the lives of many young girls living in the Sahel. The novel therefore does not only aim to share and educate, but above all to raise awareness. Faydé must be heard, seen, and understood; just like every woman in the Sahel. The title of the novel Coeur du Sahel (Heart of the Sahel), shows that the readers are committed to immersing themselves in the heart of Faydé’s life, in the “Coeur” of the Sahel. Finally, the author states: “In Coeur du Sahel, the issue is marriage by abduction (…) domestic workers are often prey to their employers and sometimes suffer rape by different family members, without ever daring to file a complaint. Ashamed of being victims, they remain silent, which reinforces their abusers’ belief that raping a domestic worker has no consequences” [3]. 

Edited by Oriane Beveraggi.

References

[1]  Alliance Sahel. “Gender equality in the Sahel: challenges and opportunities.” Alliance Sahel, 2020, Accessed 9 February 2026.

[2] United Nations. “Erasure or empowerment? In Africa’s Sahel, women confront a stark choice.” United Nations News, 2025, Accessed 7 August 2025.

[3] Juompan-Yakam, Clarisse. “Xénophobie, esclavage moderne, viol : Djaïli Amadou Amal, porte-voix insoumise.” Jeune Afrique, 13 August 2022, Accessed 7 August 2025.

Appendix

Lien du livre: https://livreur2soleil.com/yms/Ebooks/Afrique/Djalil%20Amadou%20Amal/C%C5%93ur-du-Sahel.pdf