Prospects for Peace and Security in Africa
- Hamza Kyeyune
- 19 saat önce
- 6 dakikada okunur
To actualize Africa’s peace and security mandate, reforming the UNSC is paramount.
Africa remained submissive without a decisive position in the wake of the new world order following the second world war in 1945, and as such, the standpoint of the continent has been deficiently considered in global discussions on peace and security.
Nearly 80 years after the establishment of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), little consideration remains given to the African continent in the security and political discussions and decisions of the global powers. This institutional discrimination against African countries has rendered it vulnerable and aided multiple security challenges.
The continent is confronted by various instabilities that are compounding her peoples’ efforts to alleviate alleviation, and later-alone contribute to socioeconomic transformation and good governance. Lately, there has been a slew of coup d’états, mirroring the 1980s-1990s when several countries in Africa newly liberated from colonial rule faced a storm of insurrections.
in a period of three years between 2020-2023, an entire belt south of the Sahara had successful unconstitutional changes of government, creating new challenges for the continent, this is in addition to the crises of ethnic conflicts, civil wars, and rampant corruption. In total, at least one coup attempt has occurred in 45 states Out of 54 states on the African continent since 1950. The present day surge in coups has led to a strip of nations under military rule across the Sahel, stretching from the Atlantic coast in Guinea and Gabon through the central Sahel to the Red Sea coast in Sudan.
Insurgences
Africa has also become a hot bed for terrorist organizations and insurgent groups. Daesh (also known as ISIL, Islamic State, or ISIS) has exerted influence across multiple positions on the continent through affiliated groups. Despite counterterrorism efforts, the grouping skillfully coordinates and carries out attacks, indicating its potential and resilience in its missions.
The 2024 UN report notes that Daesh has improved coordination in Sahel and West Africa. The group, currently one of the region’s most active insurgents in the Sahel has exploited the vacuum left by the withdrawal of French forces. Recent years have seen a withdrawal of French troops from parts of West Africa, including Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger after military leaders severed long-standing defense agreements. Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Chad would later follow suit.
In Mogadishu, Daesh is gaining ground, although still junior to Al-Shabaab, Somalia’s most notorious belligerent establishment, blamed for 96% of terrorist attacks in the country. Of late, Al-Shabaab’s ring leader Abdulqadir Mumin has become prominent in Daesh’s Africa network as an important enabler for logistical and financial transactions, an indication that Al-Shabaab could find a new partner. Besides Daesh, there is Boko Haram, which remains a significant threat in Nigeria and Cameroon, accused of multiple deadly assaults on civilian populations especially in Nigeria.
New Conflicts
Besides the instability occasioned by terrorist organizations, parts of the African continent remain mired in conflicts, signaling that peace and security situation on the continent is not getting any better.
Proliferation of these conflicts is attributed to internal disputes arising from poor management of ethnic diversity, inequality in resources distribution, as well as those countries ‘whose leaders lack legitimacy in the eyes of their citizens or armed forces.
South Sudan: The eruption of new conflicts like the latest in South Sudan, as tensions between President Salva Kiir and his First Vice President Riek Machar escalate, there are growing fears of a return to civil war. Tensions grew after Kiir’s government detained two ministers and several senior military officials allied with Machar. Renewed tensions are jeopardizing a 2018 peace deal that ended a five-year civil war between forces loyal to Kiir and Machar that cost nearly 400,000 lives.
Sudan: Another conflict waging in Sudan, where Sudan’s armed forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been battling for the control of Sudan since April 2023. The civil war has killed more than 20,000 people, displaced 15 million and created what the UN considers the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The instability has been further aggravated by the Libyan combatants’ engagement in interstate conflicts, particularly in Mali and Chad, further threatening the security and stability of the affected countries.
Ethiopia: Furthermore, fear and uncertainty prevail in Ethiopia, between federal government forces and the Fano, an alliance of ethnic-based militia in the Amhara region. The Amhara conflict began as minor sporadic clashes with government forces in April 2023, a year after the devastating Tigray war, which ended in 2022. During the Tigray war, various Amhara groups allied with the federal government, but now accuse the same government of sidelining them following 2022 peace deal.
Strained relations with the government rapidly escalated into a full-scale insurgency when Fano forces launched a full-blown attack in an effort to control the region’s major cities. The violence since has erupted and the death toll from the conflict is piling up. In March 2025, the government claimed to have killed more than 300 Fano fighters. The violence has since displaced more than 100,000 people and left 4.7 million children out of school.
DRC: The re-emergence of the March 23 Movement, commonly known as M23 rebellion and the ensuing fighting in in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) which has displaced over 2million people exacerbating the humanitarian crisis.
Although there are various other militants fighting in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in the mineral-rich provinces of North and South Kivu has become the focus of geopolitical rivalry between the DRC, Rwanda, and Uganda and the object of much attention from the Congolese government. Although Uganda is in eastern DRC officially backing Congo government forces against rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces, U.N. reports that Uganda has simultaneously helped train some M23 fighters and given the group a rear base to move men and arms.
Ugandan government categorically deny involvement in the DRC's internal conflicts unless as part of a regional peacekeeping effort. These and others are examples which clearly indicate that Africa is far from cleaning the house.
The myriad of these and other conflicts has inadvertently facilitated proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons, whose spread further threatens the continent’s stability I n the long run. The need to review conflict prevention and resolution tools and to effectively respond to the ever-changing nature of disputes on the continent is paramount.
Conclusion
Many of the conflicts now dominating the continent’s security landscape did not emerge unexpectedly, but rather predictable outcomes of long-simmering tensions, arising out of intertwined ingredients such as governance deficits, political stagnation and inequalities.
Therefore, it is vital to address governance and institutional fragilities that create the conditions both for the emergence and expansion of conflicts on the continent. To this end, the root cause of conflicts on the continent must be addressed beyond business as usual. The African Union (AU) the continental body charged with spearheading Africa's integration and sustainable development must provide leadership in solving conflicts on the continent in order to make strategic progress in all aspects of development.
In its pursuit of a stable and a secure Africa in the new world order, the AU should strive to mitigate the incessant outbreaks of coups d’état, which facilitate democratic backsliding in many ways, including identifying heads of state with overdue constituted terms and intervene to entrench democracy and good governance in a pre-emptive bid to prevent civil unrest which threaten peace and security on the continent.
Additionally, due to a divided United Nations Security Council and limited success UN-sponsored peacekeeping interventions, Africa-lead peace missions ought to be prioritized to guarantee maximum security for African citizens. The peace operations in in various parts of the continent, commissioned by the African Union (AU), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to address security issues represents Africa Solutions for Africa Problems and localized ownership over conflict management.
At least 38 African-led peace operations have been authorized, deploying to 25 countries. By far, the AU has been the most active supporter of these operations, authorizing 22 total missions. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has authorized 6, followed by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) (4), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) (2), the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) (2), and the member states of the Accra Initiative, Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD), and East African Community (EAC) (1). The AU should also champion the campaign for real reform at the UNSC, to be able to actualize Africa’s peace and security mandate through Agenda 2063.
References:
The Crisis Group think tank: https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/horn-africa/somalia/al-shabaab-recaptures-key-town-while-mogadishu-struggles-regain-upper
The 2024 Armed Conflict and Location Event Data (ACLED) https://acleddata.com/
2024 UN reports on Daesh or ISIS in Sahel and West Africa:
Peace and Development in Africa:
Support to the ECOWAS Peace and Security Architecture and Operations (EPSAO)
The Financing of AU Peace Support Operations: Prospects for Progress in the Security Council,” Research Report, April 2023.
Paul N (2022), The African Union at 20: Much Accomplished, More Challenges Ahead
Paul D. Williams (2021) Learning Lessons from Peace Operations in Africa since 2000
Terence McNamee etal (2021), the State of Peacebuilding in Africa
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