© 2021 IAI IAI PAPERS 21 | 10 - MARCH 2021 ISSN 2610-9603 | ISBN 978-88-9368-182-7 Water | Sahel | Chad | Niger | Nigeria | Regional integration Lake Chad: Another Protracted Crisis in the Sahel or a Regional Exception? by Bernardo Venturi and Luca Barana ABSTRACT Common narratives on the Lake Chad Basin often focus on the nexus between confict, development and climate change. In particular, the Lake’s situation attracts international coverage due to its shrinking size and the threat of multiple crises emanating from environmental degradation. This framework appears useful for donors and local governments, but the feedback loops among climate change, social marginalisation and confict are not as straightforward. The problem is that the dominance of this analytical framework calls for policy response tools that are not always adequate. In the security feld, the role of the Multinational Joint Task Force has been growing, but a stronger push in the sphere of governance is needed in order for it to gain legitimacy and improve its efectiveness on the ground. In the meantime, the Lake Chad Basin Commission has adopted some key policy tools to manage the natural resources in the area sustainably, but these initial steps must be followed by greater investment from Commission member states to advance implementation. An integrated regional approach remains the best way forward to tackle these complex dynamics. keywords