Coastal erosion and shoreline protection in West Africa: drivers, limits of current responses, and pathways toward integrated and sustainable coastal management

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Abstract Against the backdrop of increasing coastal risks driven by climate change, sea-level rise and intensifying anthropogenic pressures, understanding the performance and limitations of shoreline-protection systems has become a major scientific and policy concern. This review examines the evolution, effectiveness and management challenges of coastal-protection strategies, with particular attention to West Africa and the Gulf of Guinea. A structured literature search covering 2000–2025 was conducted using Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, ScienceDirect, African Journals Online, Google Scholar and supplementary citation tracking. After screening, 64 publications were retained for comparative critical narrative synthesis. The evidence shows that coastal erosion results from interacting natural and anthropogenic drivers, including wave and sea-level variability, dam-induced sediment deficits, port development, sand mining, rapid urbanisation and shoreline armouring. Hard-engineering structures remain the dominant response in West Africa and can provide short-term local stabilisation; however, their long-term performance is often constrained by downdrift erosion, sediment-budget disruption, ecological degradation, maintenance requirements and impacts on coastal livelihoods. Socio-economic consequences include infrastructure damage, livelihood disruption, population displacement and limited community participation. Although nature-based, hybrid and adaptive approaches are increasingly recognised internationally, their implementation and long-term evaluation remain limited in the region. The literature is also geographically concentrated and methodologically heterogeneous, with insufficient integration of physical, socio-economic and governance evidence. Future research should prioritise harmonised long-term monitoring, regional sediment-budget modelling, life-cycle assessment of protection systems and stronger coordination between science, planning and governance. Multifunctional coastal systems incorporating renewable-energy functions remain an emerging option requiring cautious, site-specific evaluation.

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