Conclusions: security culture and transnational challenges – ECOWAS in comparative perspective

Drawing upon the various contributions to this special issue, this concluding article reflects upon the ways in which a shared security culture has influenced how the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has responded to transnational challenges. It then attempts to contextualise the ECOWAS approach by providing a brief comparative analysis of how other regional arrangements in Africa and Asia have addressed transnational challenges.     

The security culture of the ECOWAS: origins,development and the challenge of child trafficking

This article explores the relationship between the security culture of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and how it has responded to transnational challenges in West Africa. To do so, it provides an overview of how the ideas, norms and principles that constitute the embryonic security culture of ECOWAS have evolved historically. Against this backdrop the article focuses on how the regional organisation has dealt with a specific contemporary security challenge: child trafficking. The concluding part of the article seeks to explain ECOWAS's collective action on child trafficking with reference to the region's different threat perceptions and security priorities. This article argues that although the decisions and policies of ECOWAS on child trafficking are influenced by certain shared ideas, norms and principles, a breakdown of collective political will and continuing differences on the key security referents and appropriate approaches to the security of individuals have led ECOWAS member states to fail in effectively addressing this particular transnational security challenge.     

Nigeria's foreign policy and transnational security challenges in West Africa

This article explores how Nigeria's foreign policy has responded to transnational security challenges in West Africa. It engages in a conceptual overview of the discourse on transnational security and links this with a discussion of Nigeria's foreign policy towards West Africa. Of note is Nigeria's pursuit of a leadership role in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), in its quest for security, economic integration and development. Several questions are posed: What do Nigerian policymakers consider to be the most significant transnational threats in West Africa? How and through what legitimate policies and instruments do they respond to such threats? How important is ECOWAS to Nigeria's attempt to respond to transnational threats? And how effective have Nigeria's attempts to influence the ECOWAS agenda in this regard been? Although ECOWAS has remained central to Nigeria's responses to transnational security threats in the subregion, the country has not been able to match its rhetoric on addressing transnational security threats with far-reaching concrete achievements. It is suggested that social transformation of Nigeria's current foreign policy (that is, to one focused and committed to putting people at its centre) and a change in the policies of dominant global powers towards West Africa would enhance human emancipation and eliminate the numerous insecurities confronting the peoples of the subregion.     

From ‘voluntary’ to a ‘binding’ process: towards the securitisation of small arms

This article analyses the issue of small arms and light weapons (SALW) proliferation in both Ghana and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Specifically, it assesses the extent to which both Ghana and ECOWAS have ‘securitised’ this particular issue through an initial ‘voluntary’ instrument first in 1998 and extended in 2001 until the signing in June 2006 of a legally and politically binding ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons, their Ammunition and Other Related Materials. To do so, the article begins by setting out the scope and a brief history of the SALW problem in West Africa. It then focuses specifically on Ghana in order to illustrate some the challenges and dilemmas in dealing with this threat. The following section deals with ECOWAS and the challenges of SALW. It analyses and traces the discourses and processes of transforming the availability of SALW into a ‘security problem’ by providing some of the official language used to discuss this issue. Subsequently, an examination is undertaken of Ghana and the challenge of SALW as an illustrative case, especially given the extent of indigenous manufacture. Such recognition of the dangers of SALW proliferation has resulted in a raft of legislation criminalising both the manufacture and possession of small arms but with minimal impact. The article explains the resilience of SALW manufacture and trafficking through a social capital approach. In the concluding section, it explores the differing perceptions of SALW and security and points to the apparent schism between state and community perceptions of the level of threat posed by SALW.     

Ghana's foreign policy and transnational security challenges in West Africa

This article focuses on Ghana's security culture as reflected in its foreign policy, and how it has influenced the way the country addresses transnational security challenges in the Economic Community of West African State subregion. In this sense, the article explores some of the linkages between national and subregional security cultures in West Africa and how effectively they have complemented each other in providing a holistic response to the transnational security challenges facing Ghana. The article argues that despite the existence of different subregional conventions and protocols made possible by an emerging subregional security culture, Ghana's strategies for addressing transnational security threats have not gone much beyond the rhetoric of addressing the problems. In reality, transnational criminal activities have not only intensified but have become more challenging. Several factors contribute to this including corrupt leadership and institutional practices, security lapses and lack of interagency coordination, and inadequate resources for addressing the problem. The article calls for adequately equipping the law enforcement agencies and the implementation of relevant laws to facilitate effective responses to transnational security challenges for Ghana and other countries in West Africa.     

Political culture,state elites and regional security in West Africa

This article analyses the dominant patterns of political culture among West Africa's state elites in an attempt to understand what standards, beliefs and principles they cherish. We suggest that although there are significant differences across the region's states, the dominant political culture can be characterised as neopatrimonial, that is, systems based on personalised structures of authority where patron–client relationships operate behind a façade of ostensibly rational state bureaucracy. In order to explore these issues the article proceeds in four parts. After providing a definition of political culture and why it is an important topic of analysis, we examine the central characteristics of the political culture held by state elites in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region. The section ‘The Nigerian factor’ briefly discusses some of the malign effects that this culture has had upon governance and political economy issues in the regional giant, Nigeria. The final section explores whether the region's elites are living up to their own claims that they are embarking upon a serious attempt to engage in state reconstruction or are instead simply searching for alternative ways to sell their more traditional concern with regime protection. We conclude that, without a fundamental recasting of the political culture guiding the region's elites, a security culture that prioritises democracy and human security is unlikely to emerge within ECOWAS.     

Civil society participation in regional integration in Africa: A comparative analysis of ECOWAS,SADC, and the EAC

There is an undeniable trend towards civil society participation in virtually all issue-areas of global governance, yet civil society participation varies widely among international organisation (IOs). While this trend has inspired a voluminous academic literature, empirically-based, comparative studies of IO-civil society interaction in Africa remain largely absent. This article therefore examines civil society participation in three African subregional organisations – the East African Community (EAC), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). What are the factors that have made regional integration in ECOWAS relatively more people-driven, and that have thus far hindered effective civil society participation in the affairs of SADC and the EAC? Support from member states, allies in the respective organisation’s bureaucracy, and characteristics of civil society itself, the research shows, affect participation in regional integration, with the latter aspect apparently more salient in SADC and the EAC than in ECOWAS.     

Good governance as a precondition for subsidiarity: human rights litigation in Nigeria and ECOWAS

ABSTRACT

Similar to the European Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) evolved gradually from little more than a customs union to a supranational organisation with sophisticated governance arrangements. As a consequence, subsidiarity has become an inevitable adjustment mechanism to align individual member state policies with objectives of the Community as a whole. In particular, since the inclusion of a protocol on good governance and democracy in 2001 an increasing number of policy areas require a delineation of competencies between state and Community organs. Moreover, the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice confines itself to the vertical application of human rights law and does not accept human rights claims against private persons since the extension of its mandate in 2005. Many cases involving the Federal Republic of Nigeria illustrate well a double procedural effect of the principle of subsidiarity in the human rights litigation within the ECOWAS legal order.     

The spaces of intervention for Mali and Guinea-Bissau

ABSTRACT

This article focuses on interventions by the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States in Guinea-Bissau and Mali. In the literature, these are often approached in a ‘top-down’ manner, focusing on formal institutions, not accounting for the complex dynamics in and around conflict intervention. This article argues that adopting space as an analytical lens allows new ways to address these issues. It highlights how interventions by different actors and their interactions are influenced by spatial perceptions and framings, which result in the making of different ‘spaces of intervention’ through different practices. The two described here, ‘scaling’ and ‘establishing reach’, enable strategic and continuous formation and negotiation of spaces for action, according to actors’ needs and interests. Thus, shedding light on specific actors and their practices, the article contributes to a better understanding of the complex dynamics in conflict intervention in West Africa.     

The use of technology and leadership in enhancing strategic cooperative policing within the SADC region

ABSTRACT

The globalisation processes driving development and the transnational nature of crime require the collaboration of police within regions using sophisticated technology to combat crime. This article examines the role of technology and leadership in enhancing cooperative policing. Following a successful safety strategy during the 2010 Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) Soccer World Cup (SWC) tournament in South Africa, the aim of the article is to demonstrate how technology and strategic leadership contributed to the success of this event. The research conducted consisted of an extensive review of existing research publications on the state of policing in southern Africa; and a conference presentation by Lieutenant-General Pruis about policing the SWC from which key policing lessons have been extracted. The literature survey revealed the challenges of police forces and policing in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) as being primarily resource constraints, and socio-political environments that are not always conducive to effective policing. Conclusions drawn are that some of the lessons from the SWC, such as planning, budgeting, strategic leadership, regional and international cooperation of security personnel, community involvement, an informed media strategy and the use of technology to support these processes, can be replicated in regional policing operations.     

多重安全视角下的东南亚核问题

东南亚核问题在不同时期有不同的表现,冷战时期主要带有传统安全的色彩,冷战后则呈现为非传统安全与传统安全的交织.尤其是近年来一些东南亚国家着手开发核电,该地区的核问题更为错综复杂.从多重安全的视角来看,核问题将对东盟的区域治理能力构成一定的挑战.     

Food politics: perspectives on food security in Central Africa

Food security is political. The identification of food insecurity and the development and implementation of responses to it are enveloped in layers of politics and power. This politics might not be as readily apparent in emergency situations where broad agreement on the need for a response is evident. But in the everyday governance of food it must not be forgotten that food security is a contested concept. This article offers a preliminary elucidation of this politics in the Central African context. To do so it presents findings from an analysis of publicly available information and media reports. This analysis hones in on the perspectives of differently situated stakeholders on food security imperatives in the Central African Economic and Monetary Community. To identify similarities and differences in the levels of emphasis different stakeholders place on different aspects of food security, the authors employ Olivier De Schutter's understanding of the relevant dimensions. Specific terms used in the presentation of food security information are associated with one of the three dimensions of food security advanced by De Schutter: availability, accessibility and adequacy. In light of this analytic approach, the article finds that stakeholders – including businesses, civil society groups, governments and multilateral and bilateral partners – do not necessarily articulate similar viewpoints on food security. There is simply no unified view on what should be done to advance food security in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea or Gabon. That being said, the article does identify intriguing areas of convergence.     

Multidimensional Threats and Military Engagement: The Case of the Italian Intervention in Libya

The military operation in Libya (2011) is a paradigmatic case regarding the growing interaction of new security challenges: regional instability, transnational organized crime and illegal immigration. The main aim of the paper is to answer the question: Why has Italy employed a specifically military instrument to tackle transnational and non-military threats? Through process tracing the research looks at the political debate over the decision-making process in the case of the Italian military engagement in Libya, emphasizing the role played by the strategic culture, international norms and domestic dynamics.     

Diaspora and drug trafficking in West Africa: A case study of Ghana

This article interrogates the emergence of drug traffickingin contemporary Ghana and West Africa within the context ofa global political economy, situated within a deeper historicalperspective. It examines the earlier trafficking of cannabisalong the coast of West Africa in the colonial period, and thelater transnational networks that have emerged to promote internationaldrug trafficking (cocaine and heroin). The article probes howthe African diaspora and international travel service theseemerging drug networks in Ghana, West Africa, Europe and theAmericas. It suggests that the concept of an ‘ideologicaldiaspora’ could shed light on a shared global popularculture, which constitutes a counter culture and rationalizescriminal activities.     

COMESA and the Tripartite Free Trade Area: Towards an African Economic Community?

Economic integration has been an espoused goal of the African continent for several decades, and steady progress has been made through the African Union and the eight regional economic communities (RECs). The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is one of the largest and most diversified RECs on the continent, and played a significant role in the launch of the Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA). This article assesses the performance of COMESA, and considers the prospects for the TFTA. It also addresses the contribution of COMESA and other RECs to the continent’s economic development and considers the prospects for a potential African Economic Community.     

文化认同与东盟合作

文化认同是东盟合作的基础.所谓文化主要是指价值观.在国际关系中,这种价值观具体表现为国家应该如何追求安全与财富.东盟国家的文化认同具体表现为对东盟方式的认同,这体现为三个方面:即不干涉内政原则、协商一致原则和组织机构的非正式性原则三个方面.东盟国家之所以会有这种认同,主要是由其所处的安全环境所决定的.这种文化认同是东盟取得重要成就的关键,但在今天却面临着挑战.     

Algeria's Roles in the OAU/African Union: From National Liberation Promoter to Leader in the Global War on Terrorism

Even prior to the country's independence, Africa has always been central to Algeria's foreign policy. Algerian nationalists not only found support on the African continent in their struggle for independence, but they also sought to contribute to the decolonization of Africa and to free it from all forms of neocolonialism. Algerian diplomacy became even more involved in African affairs after independence. Using the Role Approach, this article shows how Algerian policymakers exercised various roles within the structures of the Organization of African Unity and, to this day, in those of the African Union to serve the country's perceived national interests. While from the 1960s through the 1990s, Algerians played the roles of developer, mediator, and anti-imperialist, since the 1990s, they have played the role of antiterrorist in order partly to regain the credibility that the regime had lost during the domestic civil strife. The antiterrorist role has been relatively successful as the country succeeded in greatly improving its relations with the West, the United States in particular. At the same time, though, this had led to a relative neglect of Algeria's bilateral relations with African states which allowed its regional rivals to fill the vacuum. However, since 2013, Algeria has shown some resolve in reclaiming its influence on the continent and to strengthen the role it has played in the structures of the African Union.     

The Management of Democratic Elections in Africa (MDEA) programme at the university of South Africa: Is this the right path towards African solutions?

There have been a number of initiatives in Africa to rid the Continent of political instability, conflict, poverty and disease. Many have argued that aid from the West has helped Africa in many ways—from stopping wars, to food relief and rescuing the African environment. Yet others have slated Western involvement which they contend, frequently leaves Africans dependant rather than capable of solving their own problems. In line with the pan-Africanist and the African Union (AU) ideals, there is now a realisation by Africans that there is a need to find African solutions to African challenges and problems. This review article explores the University of South Africa’s (Unisa’s) Management of Democratic Elections in Africa (MDEA) programme, by looking at its objectives and the reason why it must be labelled a Programme, its mandate, which is in line with the brief of the AU and pan-Africanist ideals. The article focuses on how Unisa’s programme responds to the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG); and how it has attempted to facilitate knowledge for peace in Africa, through empowering electoral officials from various African states. The article concludes by looking at the successes and limitations of the Programme over a five-year period, from its inception in 2011.     

Introduction: Regional powers in contest and engagement: making sense of international relations in a globalised world

Over the last couple of years, ‘African ownership’ has become a buzzword in many fields. Economic development initiatives like the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) are based on it, partnership agreements like the Joint AU–EU Africa Strategy are built around it and its central concept of Africanisation guides virtually all external relations of the continent. African leaders (rightly) insist on it, international organisations (rightly) preach it and many non-African actors are (unsurprisingly) hiding behind it. The concept of African ownership is so omnipresent today that it is more than surprising that the simple question of who actually owns it has not yet been asked. It is the declared purpose of this paper to disentangle rhetoric from reality and identify the owner as well as the limits of African ownership in the sphere of peace and security.     

From Armed Neutrality to External Dependence: Swiss Security in the 21st Century

Abstract: Historically, Swiss identity was founded on beliefs in federalism, direct democracy and armed neutrality. Given continued popular support for autonomous self‐defense in an era of transnational threats, it is worth examining whether a small economically interdependent state, such as Switzerland, is single‐handedly capable of providing for its own security. To preview our conclusions, every facet of Switzerland’s security, whether against military threats, terrorism or natural disasters, today benefits from substantial international inputs. At base, Switzerland’s increasing security dependence has been driven by the following dynamics: 1) the general development of institutionalized international cooperation; 2) the evolving nature of the threats Switzerland faces; and 3) political efforts to “securitize” issues not hitherto considered as security problems. Because Swiss security dependence owes more to broad structural factors than deliberate choices, policymakers would be better off embracing this reality by proactively using international organizations to address transnational challenges.