Contemporary Issues On Governance Conflict And Security In Africa

This edited volume reflects on some of the important discussions on the trends of governance, conflict and security in Africa. It explores some of the emerging concerns and offers a holistic understanding of the remote and immediate causes of the conflict and how the neo-colonial African states have been structured in a manner that makes violent conflict inevitable. The book thereby provides an overview of Africa's security challenges and proffers some sustainable policy options for curtailing lawlessness and armed conflict on the continent. Literature is exhaustive about the nexus between governance, peace, and security; however, discourse on the impact of 'new' conflict on governance has been scant. Understanding these new trends has become a necessity and precondition for sustainable development, as reflected in both the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063 and the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Adeoye O. Akinola is Head of Research and Teaching at the Institute for Pan-African Thought and Conversation, University of Johannesburg, South Africa.

More than any other part of the globe, Africa has become associated with conflict, insecurity and human rights atrocities. In the popular imagination and the media, overpopulation, environmental degradation and ethnic hatred dominate accounts of African violence, while in academic and policy-making circles, conflict and insecurity have also come to occupy centre stage, with resource-hungry warlords and notions of 'greed' and 'grievance' playing key explanatory roles. Since the attacks of 9/11, there has also been mounting concern that the continent's so-called 'ungoverned spaces' will provide safe havens for terrorists intent on destroying Western civilization. The Review of African Political Economy has engaged extensively with issues of conflict and security, both analysing on-going conflicts and often challenging predominant modes of explanation and interpretation. This Review of African Political Economy Reader provides a timely, comprehensive and critical contribution to contemporary debates about conflict and security on the continent. The first section, covers some of the continent's main post-Cold War conflicts and demonstrates their global connections. The articles also discuss the so-called 'resource curse', as well as the global arms trade, and reveal the complexities of the relationship between the economic and the political. The second section focuses on security as part of post-Cold War global governance, and discusses the effects of liberal peace-building as well as the link between development assistance and the 'war on terror'. The final section examines life as it continues in conditions of war and shows how insecurity reconfigures urban space, transforms social order, identities and authority. Rita Abrahamsen is Professor in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Ottawa, Canada Published in association with ROAPE ROAPE African Readers Series Editors: Tunde Zack-Williams & Ray Bush

The need, therefore, for effective governance through border security regimes arises from the intractable challenges of conflict management as a core objective of multilateral institutions and non-governmental agencies in global governance. Thus, governance along the Frontier has come to be "marked by density and complexity". This density and complexity in frontier relations under-score the disciplinary concern for border governance. --Book Jacket.

This book critically engages with the development-security nexus in contemporary Africa, coinciding with the twentieth anniversary of the African Union (AU). Despite widespread discourse on the 'Africa Rising' narrative, many African states grapple with persistent economic challenges, violent conflicts, Afrophobia, and democratic setbacks. The AU's efforts, alongside those of other regional actors, to leverage regionalism for driving socio-economic and political development while ensuring peace and security have yielded limited results. Consequently, this edited volume takes an incisive approach to unpack the complex and vexed issues obstructing sustainable advancements in security and development in Africa. While existing studies have predominantly centered on conventional conflict and development concerns, this book sheds light on the emerging realities and evolving dynamics shaping the region's trajectory. Utilising a comprehensive case study approach, the book places Africa's challenges within both historical and contemporary contexts, aiming to present sustainable policy options to bridge the myriad gaps in the continent's peace, security, and governance architecture. By addressing the intricacies of balancing individual state interests with collective regional advancement, this volume offers a pathway toward unlocking Africa's potential for development and fostering a prosperous and harmonious 'Africa We Want'.

This book investigates contemporary human security issues in East Africa, setting forth policy recommendations and a research agenda for future studies. Human security takes a people-centered rather than state-centered approach to security issues, focusing on whether people feel safe, free from fear, want, and indignity. This book investigates human security in East Africa, encompassing issues as diverse as migration, housing, climate change, displacement, food security, aflatoxins, land rights, and peace and conflict resolution. In particular, the book showcases innovative original research from African scholars based on the continent and abroad, and together the contributors provide policy recommendations and set forth a human security research agenda for East Africa, which encompasses Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Djibouti. As well as being useful for policy makers and practitioners, this book will interest researchers across African Studies, Security Studies, Environmental Studies, Political Science, Global Governance, International Relations, and Human Geography. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license

This book provides compelling case studies of Africa's struggles, accomplishments, challenges, and prospects in the critical and interconnected areas of governance, security, and development. It argues that that Africa needs to decolonize the terms of reference that guide its nation-building, statecraft, and national development agenda.

As a comprehensive resource for readers interested in contemporary security issues in Africa, this compelling book details the impact of complex challenges in Africa and explains why addressing them grows increasingly important. Presenting both general overviews and specific case studies, this book introduces contemporary security issues in Africa, home to more than thirty of the fifty most fragile nations in the world. It covers the past three decades of conflict on the continent, focusing on such topics as weak and failing states, ethnic conflict and civil wars, natural resources and environmental security, political violence and terrorism, piracy and maritime security, food security and poverty, international responses, and future prospects. The core of the book comprises detailed analysis of the nexus between culture, politics, and security in Africa, while the volume as a whole examines key regional and transnational security issues affecting Africa and their implications at the state, regional, and international levels. The book explores the dynamic role that African nations play in influencing international security and investigates and articulates factors heightening the importance of Africa's role in international affairs.