The article also argues that conflicts at subnational and national levels in africa are of several types, and that imposing peacekeeping forces as has often been the case, or merely imposing new political and economic institutions on the various african conflicts, may not provide the desired durable outcomes. In the midst of poverty, african ruling classes or the elite group who happen to hold power at a particular time, have enriched themselves and become the targets of envy or of rivalry by other elite groups. In order to do so, the paper will briefly look at the factors underpinning political stability in africa, while. Marshall 2005 page 1 of 28 african regional trends in warfare and political instability the modern state system in subsaharan african1 hereafter referred to simply as africa is relatively new. None of these varying factors can unilaterally explain the relationship between poverty, conflict and development as issues behind africas instability.
The case of the organisation of african unity oau marvin nii ankrah textbook politics international politics region. Mainly within states, political transition conflicts arose in many african countries out of rising tensions resulting from a stalemated transition to the democratisation of political life in the 1990s. An election that is not free and fair is one of the major causes of political instability in many countries across the globe. Major conflicts in subsaharan africa political access the largely political underpinnings of the conflicts in the car, south sudan and sudan leadership struggles, political marginalisation, and demands for equitable political access resulted in an escalation in violence in 2014, with civilians often targeted on ethnic or religious grounds. Despite enjoying turbulent peace over the past ten years after the 1998 conflict, characterized by periodic political crisis, the coup detat in april. This reduces differing types of conflicts in aprm member states to their political causes rather than permitting a broader consideration of other contributing factors. The relationship between poverty, conflict and development. One of the leading causes of conflict in kenya is when individuals clash over limited resources such as land and water.
They have occurred in almost every african country throughout the postindependence period. The causes and dynamics of conflict in subsaharan africa dtic. Introduction during the four decades between the 1960s and the 1990s, there have been about 80 violent changes of governments adedeji 1999, 3 in the 48 subsaharan african countries. Each country has its own unique experience and mix of conflicts. Causes of electoral violence in africa written by ngah gabriel sous dir. Political conflict arises when different political parties with their own ideologies try to achieve their interest. This paper examines african conflicts and the roles of the african union au in conflict resolution, focusing on the recent zimbabwe and kenya conflicts. Mar 02, 2015 the horn of africa hoa has been mentioned as one of the most disputed regions of the globe.
May 12, 2010 african conflicts are frequently brushed off and dismissed as being chaotic, or worthy of some vague pity or humanitarian concern, but rarely of any indepth political analysis. Social conflict and political violence in africa is a complex subject, and it will be useful to note a few trends in african civil violence, discuss a common but misleading explanations for civil wars in africa, and then suggest two alternative framing for the patterns observed. Political instability in africa may owe much of its cause to internal factors, however the interpenetration of internal and external factors especially geo political and economic interests of the international community constantly play a significant role in undermining the very processes. However, the two modern trends of democracy and economic prosperity elude this region due in large part to persistent conflict and complex sociopolitical dynamics. Though necs past successes bolsters its credibility, racs status as a new agency with questionable neutrality and an unclear mandate undermines its legitimacy. However, there are certain similarities and recurring conflicts present in many countries. They often use terms such as civil war, violent conflict. Political conflicts and the mechanisms behind the concept paper presented at the xxiv nordic conference on local government research, gothenburg november 2628, 2015 louise skoog louise. In fact, since 1999 most terrorist attacks have been perpetrated by selfproclaimed christians. To have few resources at the disposal of a colossal number of people is to direct the emergence of poverty, just as ghandi of india put it.
In considering south africas role in the resolution of conflicts on the continent under its three presidents, mandela 19941999, mbeki 19992008 and zuma since 2009, one has to keep the two elements noted above in mind. Africa as a continent is endowed with enough resources to keep the world moving for years. It has been experienced with a number of armed conflicts, ethnolinguistic disputes, religious radicalism where in it catches the attention of most developed nations including us for their strategic interest over the region. Of these, economic followed by political causes have the highest ranking as the most common causes. Literature on causes of ethnic conflict covers a number of competing theories. Major root causes include political, economic, and social inequalities.
Causes of political conflict and possible panacea, and solutions. Resource based conflicts and political instability in africa. Understanding the causes and impacts of conflicts in the. Political instability in africa where the problem lies and. Conflict resolution in african countries politics essay. Prioritizing the political 9 background and process of the report 10 rationale of the study. Elite conflict is normally of a low intensity but it does significantly impact on the polity. Conflicts and causes of conflicts in africa project.
Download limit exceeded you have exceeded your daily download allowance. In the midst of poverty, african ruling classes, or the elite group who happen to hold power at a particular time, have enriched themselves and become the targets of envy or of rivalry. However, the two modern trends of democracy and economic prosperity elude this region due in large part to persistent conflict and complex socio political dynamics. By far, the most important factor causing africas conflicts is poor governance. Their causes and their political and social environment abdalla bujra. The horn of africa hoa has been mentioned as one of the most disputed regions of the globe. Fsi spice social conflict and political violence in africa. It then discusses the interventions that can break the link between food security and conflict, focusing on mechanisms that can shield consumers and producers from. Causes of conflicts and political instability in nigeria. Since we have looked at some of the causes of conflict in africa, let us come back home and look at some of the sources of conflict in our country. The foregoing does not suggest that there are no specific causes of conflict. Conflict resolution and peace buildind in africa as a.
Read conflicts in africaintroduction to learn more. The recent 2016 post election crisis in gabon12 that left scores dead seems to shows that electoral violence is an intractable phenomenon on the continent. The common notion is that the multiethnic african state is inherently conflictual and therefore conflict is an intrinsic phenomenon of the multiethnic state. This chapter delves into the critical question of types and causes of conflict, with the view to addressing the common patterns of most conflicts in human society. Understanding africas contemporary conflicts africa portal. The causes and dynamics of conflict in subsaharan africa subsaharan africa is a vast land rich in natural resources with great potential for investment and opportunity. Political conflicts and the mechanisms behind the concept.
Pdf african union, conflict, and conflict resolution in. A decade of electoral violence in africa, 2004 to 20 electoral violence has, in certain instances, catalyzed prolonged political conflict. Causes of conflicts in africa conflicts in africa may be said to have been caused by a multiplicity of factors such as. Political instability occurs when elections are not free and fair. These are points that can also help explain the direction of the drift and what its major causes are. Causes, effects, remedies, organizational, conflict, concept. Into mid2011, the worlds worst food crisis is being felt in east africa, in ethiopia, somalia and kenya.
Political instability in africa may owe much of its cause to internal factors, however the interpenetration of internal and external factors especially geo political and economic interests of. Causes of conflicts firstly, the literature available regarding the causes of conflict often showed how leading scholars influence the perception and, subsequently, shape policies. They attempt to explain factors leading to conflicts, such as kaplan1 1994, who. Nigeria, the largest country in africa has passed and is still passing through several restless stages. Accordingly, this paper attempted to identify and critically analyze the due. Conflict arises for different reasons and there are different types of conflict in human society. Conflicts and causes of conflicts in africa project topics. The causes of ethnic conflict in multiethnic societies1 hossien mohammadzadeh assistant professor of sociology, department of social science, payame noor university, tehran, iran email address.
His work and research interests include postconflict social and political. The root causes of the conflict are political, originating in disputes about party leadership. Resource based conflicts and political instability in. Progress in tackling africas conflicts africa renewal. We all know that africa is a diverse continent with various ethnic groups, religions, and sociocultural affiliations. The objective of this research was to investigate the causes of conflict in africa and the role. Some econometric results 7 also, rebellions may occur when forgone income is unusually low and this can be proxied by mean income per capita, male secondary schooling, and the growth rate of the economy in the preceding period representing new income opportunities. Root causes of violent conflict in developing countries ncbi. It discusses the effects of food insecurity on several types of conflict, and the political, social, and demographic factors that may exacerbate these effects. Poor security force training aggravates electoral conflicts. Additionally, lack of political will of governments of west african states to create transparent and accountable governance institutions, address human rights issues and implement signed peace agreements and resolutions is also a challenge hindering the resolution of violent conflicts in the subregion. Economic and political causes of civil wars in africa. Various studies which have been carried out in africa tend to point out at economic, political, ethnic, ideological, resources and religious causes mwagiru, op.
Marshall 2005 page 2 of 28 numbers of countries experiencing any magnitude event of each of three general types of armed conflict, as well as the annual number of countries experiencing any type or magnitude of armed conflict, for further reference. But even when there is coverage of conflicts in africa, the death toll has little to do with the levels of coverage. Force and intimidation can only be counter productive. War and political unrest costed an economy in both the immediate term and the. Causes, impact and implications for the great lakes region executive summary the democratic republic of congo is recovering from conflicts, posting substantial improve ment in overall macroeconomic performance since the cessation of the war, on the back of robust copper and cobalt exports. It situates the question of conflict within the context of the northern region of ghana and defines conflict as a situation in which people, groups or. The root causes of conflicts in the horn of africa science. The causes of return to conflict and the geopolitical. In the past 30 years africa has been especially badly affected by war see fig. African conflicts are frequently brushed off and dismissed as being chaotic, or worthy of some vague pity or humanitarian concern, but rarely of any indepth political analysis. In this paper the causes and impacts of conflicts in northern region are examined, with particular reference to the konkomba interethnic conflicts. There is a wealth of information and theories on conflict resolution. Conflicts within the political leadership are among the most common form of political strife.
Aug 19, 2018 conflict and political instability in nigeria will continue to dominate political discourse. Conflict is defined as the underlying issue in dispute between or among parties and conflict resolution as the elimination of causes of the underlying conflict. The nature of political power in nigeria, together with the real and perceived benefits of capturing and maintaining power is a key source of. What is also true is that more than half of the nations in africa have been affected by conflicts that have led to the death of many individuals, huge financial burden to the economy, massive displacements, and hindrances to the development of african countries. Causes of political conflict and possible panacea, and. When he issued his first major report on the causes of conflict in. However, one cannot deny the fact ethno political conflicts have been. Africa, conflict, car, nigeria, somalia, south sudan, sudan, boko. The key means of dealing with elite demands have often been. This article explores why africa has been largely ignored and what some of the root causes of the problems are. The causes of ethnic conflict in multiethnic societies. The root causes of conflicts in the horn of africa semantic. How minerals fuel conflicts in africa, nicolas berman, mathieu. The root causes of conflicts in the horn of africa.
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