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Libya’s deepening monetary crisis is fueling conflicts and migration flows across Africa, with global consequences. Since 2023, the eastern Libyan government, under Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, has accumulated approximately $24 billion in new debt by printing money without oversight, thereby creating a parallel financial system rife with corruption. This unchecked financing has empowered armed groups, notably Russia’s Wagner Group, providing them with resources to entrench instability across the Sahel and fund conflicts, including in Sudan. The ripple effects are severe: weapons from Libya flood the Sahel, worsening insurgencies in places like Nigeria, while migration routes through Niger and Sudan intensify humanitarian strain. This perfect storm makes Libya a potent “regional crisis multiplier,” threatening security from the Sahel to the Mediterranean.
Business Insider Africa