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Full-Text Articles in International and Area Studies
Addressing Emerging Security Threats In Post-Gaddafi Sahel And Ecowas Response To The Malian Crises, Emmanuel Aning, Frank Okyere, Mustapha Abdallah
Addressing Emerging Security Threats In Post-Gaddafi Sahel And Ecowas Response To The Malian Crises, Emmanuel Aning, Frank Okyere, Mustapha Abdallah
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This policy paper examines the broader impact of post-Gaddafi security challenges on West African states, with particular emphasis on the Sahelian regions. This will be juxtaposed against the old insecurities serving as long time precursors. As the first major unintended consequence of the Libyan crisis, we discuss the events leading to the Malian coup d’état and its implications on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Finally, the paper analyzes the options for international engagement, focusing on the UN, EU, AU and ECOWAS.
Protecting Civilians In La Cote D’Ivoire: Addressing Unanswered Questions, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi, Naila Salihu
Protecting Civilians In La Cote D’Ivoire: Addressing Unanswered Questions, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi, Naila Salihu
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This policy brief explores the concept of civilian protection and how it applies to the ongoing Ivorian crisis, and conflict situations broadly. Specifically, it discusses the challenges of promoting civilian protection in La Cote d’Ivoire and suggests ways of dealing with it. We argue that there is the need for the international community to pay particular attention to the issue of civilian protection in order to reduce civilian casualties while the conflict lasts.
Demography, Environment And Conflict In West Africa, Emmanuel Aning, Andrews Atta-Asamoah
Demography, Environment And Conflict In West Africa, Emmanuel Aning, Andrews Atta-Asamoah
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
In this paper, we argue that West Africa’s conflict experiences since 1990 have never been devoid of the concurrent influence of the youth bulge problematic and the effects of the economic downturns of countries in the sub-region. These factors can therefore not be relegated to the background in present and future attempts to achieve peace. We also argue that the outbreak of conflicts has had grave ramifications on the region’s environmental security. This paper starts with a section that analyses the nexus between demography and conflict from which evidence is deduced to explain the youth bulge phenomenon and supporting destabilising …
Promoting Peace And Stability In La Côte D’Ivoire: Negotiating The Cost Of International Inaction And The Need For Decisive Action, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi
Promoting Peace And Stability In La Côte D’Ivoire: Negotiating The Cost Of International Inaction And The Need For Decisive Action, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
In this second policy brief on the situation in La Côte d’Ivoire a calling for enforcement action led by the United Nations Operations in La Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) to stop the fighting, protect civilians and restore stability to the troubled country. It is argued that given the extent to which the situation has degenerated, it is only a UN force with a strong enforcement mandate, action and capability that can save the situation and protect hapless civilians who are at the mercy of the warring factions. It is, however, important to note that our main argument in the paper is …
Military Challenges And Threats In West Africa, Emmanuel Aning, Andrews Atta-Asamoah
Military Challenges And Threats In West Africa, Emmanuel Aning, Andrews Atta-Asamoah
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
Much of the violent and protracted conflicts characteristic of sub-Saharan Africa in the post-Cold War years occurred in West Africa,1 particularly in countries of the Mano River Union (MRU).2 Apart from the fourteen years of intermittent conflict in Liberia, the West African sub-region also witnessed civil war in Sierra Leone; instabilities in Guinea-Bissau, Côte d’Ivoire, Niger and protracted rebellions in the Southern Cassamance Province of Senegal; resource-related conflicts in Nigeria, ethnic conflicts among the Nanumba and Konkomba in northern Ghana; and political instability in Togo.
The Challenge Of The Côte D’Ivoire Crisis For West Africa: Exploring Options For A Negotiated Settlement, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi
The Challenge Of The Côte D’Ivoire Crisis For West Africa: Exploring Options For A Negotiated Settlement, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This paper discusses the political deadlock in La Côte d’Ivoire, cautions against the use of force, and calls on the international community to explore options for negotiated settlement. It argues that the use of force in the Ivorian situation will be a zero sum game in which the civilian populations of the country will suffer. On the contrary, a negotiated settlement presents the best opportunity for a win win situation in which the Ivorian population can be protected
Liberia: A Briefing Paper On The Trc Report, Emmanuel Aning, Thomas Jaye
Liberia: A Briefing Paper On The Trc Report, Emmanuel Aning, Thomas Jaye
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
The main purpose of this policy brief is to critically examine, and provide a capsule analysis and nuanced understanding of the context, mandate, reactions and key issues emerging out of the TRC report and recommendations. Subsequently, the essay puts forward some recommendations for immediate actions by the Government and people of Liberia as well as the broader international community of state and non-state actors in order to facilitate dialogue and informed social debates around the issues emerging out of the report.
Breaking Up A Monolithic State: Reflections Of Unarmed Ghanaian Military Observers In Kosovo And Bosnia, Fiifi Ed-Afful, Evelyn Avoxe, Emmanuel Aning
Breaking Up A Monolithic State: Reflections Of Unarmed Ghanaian Military Observers In Kosovo And Bosnia, Fiifi Ed-Afful, Evelyn Avoxe, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
What this paper seeks to do is to analyze the personal experiences and contributions of Ghanaian military observers under UNPROFOR as an alternative to general media and official UN reports. It gives important insights into the role of military observers, with a view to drawing out important lessons for filling the knowledge gaps with respect to peace building and state building. The analysis is based on multiple faceto-face narratives drawn from interviews with four Ghanaian military officers posted as military observers to the Bosnian conflict between 1993 and 1995.
Security, The War On Terror, And Official Development Assistance, Emmanuel Aning
Security, The War On Terror, And Official Development Assistance, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States and the subsequent declaration of a War on Terror, several international issues have been affected, including the disbursement of official development assistance. This paper examines the connections between development aid, security, and the War on Terror and analyses the manner in which these linkages are impacting on the orientation, understanding, performance, and efficacy of existing official development assistance discourses, and assesses the emergence or otherwise of a new securitisation and politicisation of aid. The paper draws linkages between official development assistance, security, and terrorism, and applies this analysis to a discussion …
Organized Crime In West Africa: Options For Eu Engagement, Emmanuel Aning
Organized Crime In West Africa: Options For Eu Engagement, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
Worldwide, organized crime is considered a major threat to human security. Organized crime impedes social, economic, cultural and democratic developments globally, with disproportionate effects on developing and fragile states. The threat and challenges of organized crime in Africa in general and West Africa in particular is enormous because of the high presence of fragile states serving as potential breeding grounds for such activities (Commission of the European Communities 2007: 5). In Africa, as in the rest of the world, organized criminal activities take the form of drug trafficking, advanced fee and Internet fraud, human trafficking, diamond smuggling, forgery, cigarette smuggling, …
Responsibility To Protect In Africa: An Analysis Of The African Union's Peace And Security Architecture, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi
Responsibility To Protect In Africa: An Analysis Of The African Union's Peace And Security Architecture, Emmanuel Aning, Samuel Atuobi
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
In this paper we argue that, since its birth, the African Union (AU) has established a set of norms and principles that mirror the tenets of R2P as agreed to by the Outcome Document of the 2005 World Summit. These norms and principles coupled with the AU's peace and security architecture make it proactive in conflict prevention and the management of crisis situations on the continent. Collaborative ventures between the African Union (at the continental level), the regional economic communities (RECs) at the (sub-regional level) and the UN (at the global level), we argue, are thus the best options for …
The Role Of Private Military Companies In Us-Africa Policy, Emmanuel Aning, Thomas Jaye, Samuel Atuobi
The Role Of Private Military Companies In Us-Africa Policy, Emmanuel Aning, Thomas Jaye, Samuel Atuobi
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This article discusses the increasing use of private military companies (PMCs) in United States' security policy in Africa, and examines this phenomenon in relation to the US' various military training programmes on the continent. We argue that the increasing use of PMCs in US security policy has evolved due to two critical and mutually dependent developments; African state weakness and resource stringency on the one hand, and the US's overwhelming security commitments around the world, combined with military downsizing, on the other. The article further argues that the involvement of PMCs is to a large extent informed by US concerns …
From 'Voluntary' To A 'Binding' Process: Towards The Securitisation Of Small Arms, Emmanuel Aning
From 'Voluntary' To A 'Binding' Process: Towards The Securitisation Of Small Arms, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
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 …
Us Peace-Operations Policy In Africa: From Acri To Africom, A. Sarjoh Bah, Emmanuel Aning
Us Peace-Operations Policy In Africa: From Acri To Africom, A. Sarjoh Bah, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This article examines the changing nature of US peacekeeping policy in Africa in the postcold war period. After an account of the failures in Somalia and Rwanda in the early 1990s, it traces the evolution of various training programmes, from the African Crisis Response Initiative (ACRI) in the early 1990s to the African Command (AFRICOM). We argue that, while these initiatives had some characteristics that were welcomed by African states, the programmes never achieved their full potential. The United States was quick to replace one programme with another when it ran into difficulty with the recipients, leading to a shift …
Are There Emerging West African Criminal Networks? The Case Of Ghana, Emmanuel Aning
Are There Emerging West African Criminal Networks? The Case Of Ghana, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This paper situates discussions about emerging African Criminal Networks (ACN) within Ghana specifically, and West Africa generally, and seeks to present the initial results of an empirically based study on the activities of transnational organised criminal (TOCs) groups in Ghana. The paper argues that the nature of state and statehood in Africa and its inability to establish effective regulatory mechanisms contributes to the rise of these particular types of criminal groups. It begins by conceptualising the place of Ghanaian and West African criminal groups within the framework of international crime. Furthermore, it undertakes an indepth analysis of three types of …
Assessing The Role Of The African Union In Preventing And Combating Terrorism In Africa, Martin Ewi, Emmanuel Aning
Assessing The Role Of The African Union In Preventing And Combating Terrorism In Africa, Martin Ewi, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
The period after 9/11 can be characterised as the terrorism moment in world history. Every actor in international relations—the state, regional, continental and international as well as civil society organisations—has been mobilised to combat what, apparently has been conceived as a common security threat to humanity. The transformation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) into the African Union (AU) was a divine coincidence at a time when multilateralism and international cooperation were being challenged by the threat of terrorism. In the post-9/11 period, the main concern of the Union has been to reinforce and implement existing counter-terrorism instruments adopted …
Keeping The Peace In Africa: Challenges And Opportunities, Emmanuel Aning
Keeping The Peace In Africa: Challenges And Opportunities, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
Focuses on the challenges and opportunities for peacekeeping efforts in Africa. Shift in the approach to peacekeeping and the desirability of such efforts; Structural weaknesses that may continue to engender conflicts in Africa; Significance of the establishment of the International Criminal Court.
Investing In Peace And Security In Africa: The Case Of Ecowas Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, Emmanuel Aning
Investing In Peace And Security In Africa: The Case Of Ecowas Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This paper argues that, by investing in good governance and democratisation—two factors fundamental to West African security—ECOWAS is also contributing to sub-regional peace and stability. An inclusive approach is needed to forge effective relationships between governance and security in West Africa. ECOWAS has designed a strategic framework that identifies priority areas for conflict management. At issue, though, is its capacity to confront and deal with issues that straddle security, peace, good governance, and democratisation. This paper analyses the dynamics of ECOWAS’s security-sector reforms. The perception that the security sector itself is still a major source of insecurity in West Africa …
African Commitments To Conflict Prevention And Peacemaking: A Review Of Eight Nepad Countries, Emmanuel Aning, Prosper Addo, Emma Birikorang, Emmanuel Sowatey
African Commitments To Conflict Prevention And Peacemaking: A Review Of Eight Nepad Countries, Emmanuel Aning, Prosper Addo, Emma Birikorang, Emmanuel Sowatey
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
The African Human Security Initiative (AHSI) is a network of seven African non-governmental research organisations that have come together to measure the performance of key African governments in promoting human security. The project is inspired by a wish to contribute to the ambitions of the New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). Whereas the APRM process has defined a comprehensive set of objectives, standards, criteria and indicators that cover four broad areas, AHSI only engages with one of the four, namely issues of political governance in so far as these relate to human …
Eliciting Compliance From Warlords: The Ecowas Experience In Liberia, 1990–1997, Emmanuel Aning
Eliciting Compliance From Warlords: The Ecowas Experience In Liberia, 1990–1997, Emmanuel Aning
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning
This article examines the strategies initiated by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to elicit compliance with its disarmament policies from belligerents in Liberia's 1989–96 civil conflict. I propose to tackle the task within a linked and holistic four‐fold approach. First, I situate ECOWAS's intervention in Liberia from 1990 to 1997 within the changing context of international perceptions of multilateral organisation involvement in civil wars. ECOWAS's intervention had different diplomatic phases. The first phase under the Standing Mediation Committee lasted from May 1990‐June 1991, The Committee of Five Process from June 1991‐August 1992, and the Committee of Nine …