Pub Date : 2021-11-26DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1991407
N. M. Alene
{"title":"Peacebuilding in Contemporary Africa: In Search of Alternative Strategies","authors":"N. M. Alene","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1991407","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1991407","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"31 1","pages":"115 - 119"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-11-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48399359","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-11-18DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1994438
H. Hassan
ABSTRACT The outbreak of COVID-19 has shifted from an urgent health issue to a major security threat requiring emergency measures that go beyond normal policies. Many African governments have exploited this pandemic as a deadly threat facing both the state and society to justify unprecedented precautionary measures that restrict people’s freedoms. Thus, the aim of this study was to analyse the current trend of the interventionist state and its socio-political implications in the medium and long term. Using a qualitative approach and literature review, this study examined the impact of securitisation of COVID-19 on African societies. The key findings reveal that most of the African responses to the pandemic were cases of non-traditional securitisation issues. Therefore, such findings are relevant for further studies to explore new threats and risks in the context of securitisation.
{"title":"The securitisation of COVID-19 in Africa: Socio-economic and political implications","authors":"H. Hassan","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1994438","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1994438","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT The outbreak of COVID-19 has shifted from an urgent health issue to a major security threat requiring emergency measures that go beyond normal policies. Many African governments have exploited this pandemic as a deadly threat facing both the state and society to justify unprecedented precautionary measures that restrict people’s freedoms. Thus, the aim of this study was to analyse the current trend of the interventionist state and its socio-political implications in the medium and long term. Using a qualitative approach and literature review, this study examined the impact of securitisation of COVID-19 on African societies. The key findings reveal that most of the African responses to the pandemic were cases of non-traditional securitisation issues. Therefore, such findings are relevant for further studies to explore new threats and risks in the context of securitisation.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"31 1","pages":"19 - 32"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-11-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43845380","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-22DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1982739
T. Makahamadze, F. Sibanda
ABSTRACT This article examines how the securitisation of COVID-19 helped the ZANU-PF government to consolidate power. It uses data collected from various document sources such as news outlets, social media platforms, and websites. Additionally, the researchers conducted informal interviews with Zimbabweans through social networking platforms. The study found that the measures the government (securitising actor) adopted to contain the coronavirus did not match the degree of the threat and noted glaring discrepancies between what the government said and its actions. In addition, the implementation of the COVID-19 measures indicates that the ruling party sought to achieve other agendas other than protecting the public (referent objects). The administration used extraordinary measures associated with curbing the spread of COVID-19 as a cover to decimate the opposition coalition, Movement for Democratic Change-Alliance (MDC-A), and consolidate power through the politicisation of food, harassment of those who broke the lockdown measures, prevention of anti-government protests, postponement of elections, and constitutional amendments.
{"title":"Gratuitous benefit for the ZANU-PF government? Securitisation of COVID-19 and authoritarian politics in Zimbabwe","authors":"T. Makahamadze, F. Sibanda","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1982739","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1982739","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT This article examines how the securitisation of COVID-19 helped the ZANU-PF government to consolidate power. It uses data collected from various document sources such as news outlets, social media platforms, and websites. Additionally, the researchers conducted informal interviews with Zimbabweans through social networking platforms. The study found that the measures the government (securitising actor) adopted to contain the coronavirus did not match the degree of the threat and noted glaring discrepancies between what the government said and its actions. In addition, the implementation of the COVID-19 measures indicates that the ruling party sought to achieve other agendas other than protecting the public (referent objects). The administration used extraordinary measures associated with curbing the spread of COVID-19 as a cover to decimate the opposition coalition, Movement for Democratic Change-Alliance (MDC-A), and consolidate power through the politicisation of food, harassment of those who broke the lockdown measures, prevention of anti-government protests, postponement of elections, and constitutional amendments.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"31 1","pages":"33 - 50"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-10-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43201101","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-07DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1980412
Felix Kumah-Abiwu
ABSTRACT Africa’s security landscape has been experiencing securitised-development practices through counterterrorism activities from donor countries engaged in the ‘Global War on Terror’ (GWOT). While some African governments continue to ‘benefit’ from the securitised-development agenda, critiques argue that there are human rights concerns that are connected to the practice of securitised-development. They have emphasised how some African governments and military actors involved in fighting the GWOT are also faced with human rights issues. To explore these issues, the article examines the securitised-development agenda in Kenya and Uganda and its impact on human rights. The article argues that the securitised-development practice is characterised by underlying contradictions involving the fight against terrorism and the accompanying human rights concerns in these countries.
{"title":"Africa’s security landscape of securitised-development and human rights issues","authors":"Felix Kumah-Abiwu","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1980412","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1980412","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Africa’s security landscape has been experiencing securitised-development practices through counterterrorism activities from donor countries engaged in the ‘Global War on Terror’ (GWOT). While some African governments continue to ‘benefit’ from the securitised-development agenda, critiques argue that there are human rights concerns that are connected to the practice of securitised-development. They have emphasised how some African governments and military actors involved in fighting the GWOT are also faced with human rights issues. To explore these issues, the article examines the securitised-development agenda in Kenya and Uganda and its impact on human rights. The article argues that the securitised-development practice is characterised by underlying contradictions involving the fight against terrorism and the accompanying human rights concerns in these countries.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"31 1","pages":"99 - 114"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45332014","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-02DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1975788
C. Saba
ABSTRACT This study explores the drivers of security outcome convergence for 51 African countries spanning the period from 2000 to 2018. Phillips and Sul convergence club and system generalised method of moments (SGMM) estimation techniques were applied. The main findings suggest security outcome convergence, and this implies that African countries are characterised by similar factors (economic, developmental, geographic and governance) which in turn determine an idiosyncratic course of their paths for security policies. The study further confirms that African countries in general appear to have gradually chosen at least to some extent similar paths for their security measures. It is asserted that the economic, developmental, geographic and governance policies pursued by African governments – and the ability of these governments to shape their policies – are likely to impact the process of security outcome convergence in Africa.
{"title":"An investigation of security outcome convergence and the dynamics of their influencing factors in Africa","authors":"C. Saba","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1975788","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1975788","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT This study explores the drivers of security outcome convergence for 51 African countries spanning the period from 2000 to 2018. Phillips and Sul convergence club and system generalised method of moments (SGMM) estimation techniques were applied. The main findings suggest security outcome convergence, and this implies that African countries are characterised by similar factors (economic, developmental, geographic and governance) which in turn determine an idiosyncratic course of their paths for security policies. The study further confirms that African countries in general appear to have gradually chosen at least to some extent similar paths for their security measures. It is asserted that the economic, developmental, geographic and governance policies pursued by African governments – and the ability of these governments to shape their policies – are likely to impact the process of security outcome convergence in Africa.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"30 1","pages":"473 - 494"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42513555","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-02DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.2006903
Dries Velthuizen, Lisa Otto
{"title":"Security the African way: From indigenous conflict resolution to state response","authors":"Dries Velthuizen, Lisa Otto","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.2006903","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.2006903","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"30 1","pages":"417 - 417"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43412600","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-09-09DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1969961
Freedom Chukwudi Onuoha, G. E. Ezirim, P. Onuh
ABSTRACT The emergence of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in November 2019 has nearly brought the world to a halt. Recording her first COVID-19 case on 27 February 2020, the Nigerian government’s default response to the pandemic was to lock down major parts of the country, among other measures. Despite the nationwide lockdown, inter-state travel continued unabated as many travellers bribed their way through the different checkpoints mounted by security agencies. As a result of the prevalence of ‘normed corruption’, the lockdown only created opportunity for brazen extortion by law enforcement officials. Using the institutional corruption theory as our framework of analysis, and coupled with the use of both primary and secondary data generated during the lockdown, the paper noted that entrenched culture of extortionate policing in the ranks of security forces meant that arrest and prosecution of violators of the lockdown became a distant concern. The result is that COVID-19 suspects or carriers travelled from one state to another without being detected. It concludes that Nigeria should leverage lessons learned from policing COVID-19 in framing future responses in containment measures.
{"title":"Extortionate policing and the futility of COVID-19 pandemic nationwide lockdown in Nigeria: Insights from the South East Zone","authors":"Freedom Chukwudi Onuoha, G. E. Ezirim, P. Onuh","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1969961","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1969961","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT The emergence of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in November 2019 has nearly brought the world to a halt. Recording her first COVID-19 case on 27 February 2020, the Nigerian government’s default response to the pandemic was to lock down major parts of the country, among other measures. Despite the nationwide lockdown, inter-state travel continued unabated as many travellers bribed their way through the different checkpoints mounted by security agencies. As a result of the prevalence of ‘normed corruption’, the lockdown only created opportunity for brazen extortion by law enforcement officials. Using the institutional corruption theory as our framework of analysis, and coupled with the use of both primary and secondary data generated during the lockdown, the paper noted that entrenched culture of extortionate policing in the ranks of security forces meant that arrest and prosecution of violators of the lockdown became a distant concern. The result is that COVID-19 suspects or carriers travelled from one state to another without being detected. It concludes that Nigeria should leverage lessons learned from policing COVID-19 in framing future responses in containment measures.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"30 1","pages":"451 - 472"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47942717","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-08-26DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1968916
Timothy Donais, Ayiko Solomon
ABSTRACT Protecting civilians has been the primary raison d’être of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) since civil war erupted in late 2013. Since then, UN efforts to protect vulnerable civilians have focused on a handful of so-called protection of civilians (PoC) sites. While they have unquestionably saved lives, the PoC sites have also absorbed the lion’s share of mission resources, severely limiting UNMISS’ ability to protect civilians elsewhere. The signing of the still-fragile Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) has enabled a reconsideration of the UNMISS protection mandate in light of what remains an uncertain transition. Given the systemic constraints on the UN’s ability to project force in the name of PoC, we argue that UNMISS’ most constructive and lasting contribution to both protection and peace in South Sudan will be through sustained investments in inclusive local-level peacebuilding. Re-orienting the PoC mandate along these lines offers an opportunity to at least partially counteract the decidedly exclusive nature of the country’s current peace process, and to support bottom-up conflict resolution processes that could eventually interact in constructive ways with top-down dynamics.
{"title":"Protection through peacebuilding in South Sudan","authors":"Timothy Donais, Ayiko Solomon","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1968916","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1968916","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Protecting civilians has been the primary raison d’être of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) since civil war erupted in late 2013. Since then, UN efforts to protect vulnerable civilians have focused on a handful of so-called protection of civilians (PoC) sites. While they have unquestionably saved lives, the PoC sites have also absorbed the lion’s share of mission resources, severely limiting UNMISS’ ability to protect civilians elsewhere. The signing of the still-fragile Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) has enabled a reconsideration of the UNMISS protection mandate in light of what remains an uncertain transition. Given the systemic constraints on the UN’s ability to project force in the name of PoC, we argue that UNMISS’ most constructive and lasting contribution to both protection and peace in South Sudan will be through sustained investments in inclusive local-level peacebuilding. Re-orienting the PoC mandate along these lines offers an opportunity to at least partially counteract the decidedly exclusive nature of the country’s current peace process, and to support bottom-up conflict resolution processes that could eventually interact in constructive ways with top-down dynamics.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"31 1","pages":"51 - 65"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44877785","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-08-02DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1959360
S. Okunade, O. Faluyi, Emmanuel Matambo
ABSTRACT Insurgency has gained prominence in Africa. It is usually associated with marginalisation, poverty, and inequality and often has religious links and bases. Insurgency frequently originates in communities situated along the borders of a country but soon spreads to neighbouring countries due to the poor response from the concerned state. The literature reveals that when state institutions ignore insurgent groups, they utilise that window of time to network with terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) to solicit funds, arms and ammunition and training of new recruits and existing members. This was the case with Boko Haram, which was initially ignored by the Nigerian government only for it to become a security threat to the entire West African sub-region. An Islamic group, Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jammah (ASWJ) has recently emerged in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado Province with the aim of creating an Islamic state within the region. Drawing from the Boko Haram experience in West Africa, this article critically assesses the short- and long-term security threats that this group poses to Mozambique and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and explores the strategies that could be deployed to combat the insurgency before it becomes a fully-fledged security challenge.
{"title":"Evolving patterns of insurgency in Southern and West Africa: Refocusing the Boko Haram lens on Mozambique","authors":"S. Okunade, O. Faluyi, Emmanuel Matambo","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1959360","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1959360","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Insurgency has gained prominence in Africa. It is usually associated with marginalisation, poverty, and inequality and often has religious links and bases. Insurgency frequently originates in communities situated along the borders of a country but soon spreads to neighbouring countries due to the poor response from the concerned state. The literature reveals that when state institutions ignore insurgent groups, they utilise that window of time to network with terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) to solicit funds, arms and ammunition and training of new recruits and existing members. This was the case with Boko Haram, which was initially ignored by the Nigerian government only for it to become a security threat to the entire West African sub-region. An Islamic group, Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jammah (ASWJ) has recently emerged in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado Province with the aim of creating an Islamic state within the region. Drawing from the Boko Haram experience in West Africa, this article critically assesses the short- and long-term security threats that this group poses to Mozambique and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and explores the strategies that could be deployed to combat the insurgency before it becomes a fully-fledged security challenge.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"30 1","pages":"434 - 450"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10246029.2021.1959360","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45528851","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-07-22DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2021.1944886
Belay Asmare
ABSTRACT Despite the availability of numerous studies on the issue of indigenous conflict resolution mechanisms, the process and ritual practices have not been explored in detail. Thus, the objective of this study is to examine the process and ritual practices during conflict resolution by shimgelina. To achieve these objectives, the study involved fourteen purposely selected shimageles and five conflicting parties for in-depth interviews, and three key informants. Personal observation and document reviews were used to collect data. In addition, one Focus Group Discussion, containing seven Idir leaders, was held to generate rich data about the issue. Thematic categorisation and analysis were used to examine the collected data. This study reveals that shimageles are employing a series of processes of conflict resolution with different ritual practices. Furthermore, this study argues that each ritual practice has its own importance in the process of conflict resolution. Despite the existence of different rituals that are important for conflict resolution and transformation, the shimageles and conflicting parties have fewer adherences to those ritual practices. Therefore, the study recommends that unless the rituals which are important for conflict resolution are strictly followed, the capacity of the shimageles to perform their conflict resolution role is undermined and remains elusive.
{"title":"Uncovering the processes and ritual practices of indigenous conflict resolution in the shimgelina system","authors":"Belay Asmare","doi":"10.1080/10246029.2021.1944886","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2021.1944886","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Despite the availability of numerous studies on the issue of indigenous conflict resolution mechanisms, the process and ritual practices have not been explored in detail. Thus, the objective of this study is to examine the process and ritual practices during conflict resolution by shimgelina. To achieve these objectives, the study involved fourteen purposely selected shimageles and five conflicting parties for in-depth interviews, and three key informants. Personal observation and document reviews were used to collect data. In addition, one Focus Group Discussion, containing seven Idir leaders, was held to generate rich data about the issue. Thematic categorisation and analysis were used to examine the collected data. This study reveals that shimageles are employing a series of processes of conflict resolution with different ritual practices. Furthermore, this study argues that each ritual practice has its own importance in the process of conflict resolution. Despite the existence of different rituals that are important for conflict resolution and transformation, the shimageles and conflicting parties have fewer adherences to those ritual practices. Therefore, the study recommends that unless the rituals which are important for conflict resolution are strictly followed, the capacity of the shimageles to perform their conflict resolution role is undermined and remains elusive.","PeriodicalId":44882,"journal":{"name":"African Security Review","volume":"30 1","pages":"418 - 433"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-07-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10246029.2021.1944886","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45314770","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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