Africa

War in Sudan’s Darfur region has triggered a refugee crisis in eastern Chad and raised concerns that turmoil could spread. In this Q&A, Crisis Group expert Enrica Picco draws upon research at the Chad-Sudan border to explain the challenges facing N’Djamena.

The Sahel region in Africa has experienced some of the worst distress in the world in recent times caused by violence, insecurity, hunger and deprivation. The recent crisis in Niger and the possibilities of its escalation have added to a situation that was already full of simmering tensions as seen in various countries of this region.

Oversight, accountability, and governance of the security sector are essential ingredients to a capable and effective force, mitigating infractions and contributing to a learning environment that improves future practices.

Highlights

• The security sector is equally subject to the law and oversight institutions as any other public agency.
• Weak security sector oversight institutions inhibit security sector professionalism in Africa. Stronger internal and external oversight is an essential element of enhancing security sector effectiveness.
• Security organs should construct institutional frameworks that nurture professionalism and a consistent apolitical posture.
• When security actors allow themselves to become politicized, they erode the credibility of security institutions among the population and can themselves become a security threat to citizens.

L’Institut d’Etudes et de Sécurité a mené des enquêtes sur le phénomène dans les quatre départements du nord Bénin et a dévoilé les résultats de ses investigations mercredi à Cotonou.

Les groupes jihadistes qui attaquent le nord du Bénin bénéficient de la complicité des réseaux de trafiquants qui opèrent depuis de longues années dans cette partie du pays. C’est un rapport de l’Institut d’Etudes de Sécurité (ISS) qui le révèle.

«Les fondements historiques de la France en Afrique ont été ébranlés», ont rapporté certains journaux français dernièrement. Ils se sont penchés sur les récents coups d’État successifs dans les pays africains, alliés de Paris. La presse française a abordé le coup d’État qui a conduit au renversement au Gabon. Or, Le Figaro écrit que la diplomatie française a perdu son équilibre à cause de l’épidémie de coups d’État en Afrique. La Croix a souligné qu’«avec le Gabon, c’est un pilier historique de la France en Afrique qui vacille». Le Point a précisé que la France a manqué la «mondialisation de l’Afrique» à travers les coups d’État.

The so-called “coup belt” in Africa, which includes almost all the countries of the Sahel, are in confrontation with the Economic Community of West African States. There are also a myriad of Al-Qaeda and Daesh groups operating in the region. This violence feeds into the flow of displaced persons and migration flow. To their north is Libya, a principal point of impact, and beyond Europe. This fact is not a new message, but there is a new urgency.

Army Maj. Gen. Todd Wasmund’s first Africa-focused assignment came a decade ago at the Pentagon, where the aftermath of the Benghazi terrorist attack loomed over a military mission in flux.

The 2012 assault on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Libya began on the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks by al-Qaida and ended in the deaths of four people, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya and two former Navy SEALs.

Key points

Due to an overly broad definition of threat, the United States currently commits far too many military resources to counterterrorism, especially in Africa.

The United States is pursuing military action against at least thirteen terrorist groups in Africa, but only one of those groups has the “global reach” to be a threat to Americans. Consequently, the U.S. military is fighting a slew of counterinsurgency—not counterterrorism—wars in Africa today, a strategy that borders on nation-building.

Africa is on the boil once again. The rule by the ballot box is being replaced with the rule of the gun. The military is no longer content to remain in the barracks but has chosen to be at the steering wheel of power, driving the politicians away from the public arena into infamy and political obscurity. From West Africa, especially the Sahel, down to Central Africa, and Northeast Africa, the military has seized power sending dictators out of business.