A number of African countries structurally experience semi-arid conditions worsened by a staggered agricultural productivity and a reliance on import of foodstuffs. IPCC (2007) predicts a reduction of 50 percent in yield by 2020, and a fall in crop net revenues of 90
percent by 2100 in already struggling regions. If these dismal predictions come to realization, then most countries in Sahel will cease agricultural production. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of droughts on the mean and variance of crop yields, and to examine the implications of climate variability on agriculture in eight countries of Sahel.