The town of Dori in Burkina Faso.
It was once a bustling trading hub near the border with Niger
Now, people here are battling a burgeoning population, a rise in Islamist attacks, and climate change
At the local medical clinic, nine-month-old Sakinatou Amadou is recovering from malnutrition.
Her mother died and her grandmother is now the matriarch of the family of 14.
They are among more than 2 million people across Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger who have been forced from their homes by a wave of attacks on rural communities by Islamist groups.
And with crop yields further compromised by erratic rainfall,
some 5.5 million in the three countries on the edge of the Sahara are facing food shortages.
The town's once-bustling livestock market has shut down due to the violence.
Transporting food in the area is dangerous and prices have skyrocketed, said Kadidiatou Ba, who sells vegetables and dried goods from a roadside shack.
"Now, nobody wants to come to Dori, nobody. Once in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso's capital), I spoke to a young man who told me: even if you pay me 1 million CFA (1,800 USD), I won't come to Dori."
Meanwhile, Dori's population has nearly tripled in two years to 71,000.
And the influx of displaced people threatens to overwhelm local services.
Three or four children cram behind each desk at this local school.
Abdoulaye Bokoum is the headmaster.
"This year, we have received 144 displaced pupils form areas with a very high security risk. When they came here, they were traumatised children. Parents, when they come to us with their children you can see an indescribable sadness.
He says the school tries to feed each pupil a bowl of rice and beans so they can have at least one square meal per day.
Beyond that, they're taught how to garden and grow their own vegetables.
Skills he hopes will prepare them for life outside the classroom.
