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Rethinking National Security Strategies in Africa
... As a result, Kuol and Amegboh have claimed that Africa will continue to be a continent of potential and ongoing challenges as long as this unhealthy situation continues. I further argue that, many African countries are increasingly unable to offer security to their inhabitants, and in certain cases, states have no political stability [29]. The origins of insecurity in Africa can be traced back to the pre-colonial era, which was marked by bitter inter-and intra-community disputes that culminated in peaceful settlements in their existing communal territories [29]. ...
... I further argue that, many African countries are increasingly unable to offer security to their inhabitants, and in certain cases, states have no political stability [29]. The origins of insecurity in Africa can be traced back to the pre-colonial era, which was marked by bitter inter-and intra-community disputes that culminated in peaceful settlements in their existing communal territories [29]. In all this, leadership plays a vital role. ...
... The findings of the study showed that electoral violence has a direct and positive relationship with state security. Previous research on electoral violence and state security found a similar result, confirming a direct association between the two variables [2,24,29]. According to Tar and Bala, violence in Nigeria is becoming an increasingly pressing concern, with cattle rustling, banditry, kidnapping and farmer herder conflicts, putting immense pressure on state's institutional preparedness and the response capacity of the government, military, and other security agencies in handling [24]. ...
Electoral violence has become a recurring challenge in Africa, posing a significant threat to democracy, political stability, and human security. This paper explores the relationship between state security and electoral violence in the African context and draws valuable lessons for Ghana. The objectives of this study include investigating the causes and dynamics of electoral violence in Africa, analyzing the role of state security agencies in preventing and mitigating electoral violence, assessing lessons that Ghana could learn from other African countries' experiences, and proposing recommendations to enhance state security and prevent electoral violence in Ghana's Fourth Republic. The paper adopted an explanatory sequential mixed method design. The approach combined the quantitative data analysis and qualitative data collection through literature reviews, interviews, and focus group discussions. By identifying causes and dynamics of electoral violence, assessing the performance of state security agencies, and drawing lessons from successful strategies employed in other African countries. The aim of the study is to add to the existing literature the development of effective measures for ensuring peaceful and fair elections in Ghana. The results reveal a positive and direct relationship between electoral violence and democratization. Furthermore, the research discloses a positive and direct relationship between electoral violence and state security. Finally, the results reveal that state security has an intermediating effect between electoral violence and democratization. The research findings will inform policymakers, election officials, and relevant stakeholders in designing strategies to reduce electoral violence and promote democratic processes in Ghana and across the African continent. Based on these, the study recommends the provision of trusted security, a constitutional review, and an increment of trust in the electoral space.
... The security landscape in Africa is quickly evolving, with more multidimensional, dynamic, interrelated, and complex security challenges. The repercussions of global megatrends intensely displayed in Africa aggravate the prevalence, intensity, and duration of these security concerns (Kuol and Amegboh, 2021). Despite the rising security concerns, the idea of security is developing away from state and regimecentric approaches and toward human security. ...
This article investigates the implementation and practicality of the Africa 2063 agenda, which is seen as Africa's roadmap and grand plan for transforming Africa into a future global superpower. Agenda 2063 includes not just Africa's Future Aspirations, but also critical Flagship Programs that may increase Africa's economic development and growth while also contributing to the continent's rapid change. The African continent is rife with problems that both current and previous governments have failed to solve. To mention a few, these issues include poverty, malnutrition, bad health care systems, low living standards, poor infrastructure, political instability, and weak economies characterized by low economic development. It cannot be contested that the Africa 2063 agenda is a critical strategy embraced by African Leaders to build a better Africa for its residents, and if executed effectively and efficiently, it has the potential to alter the African continent.
... This recognition of human security as national security has important implications for the way security is perceived, planned, managed, and delivered to the citizens as well as the way resources are allocated to the security sector (Kuol & Amegboh, 2021). This implies that human security is not only people-centered, but it is also end-focused, multi-sectoral, and prevention-oriented with emphasis on the centrality of human beings and prioritization of human lives and livelihoods in responding to security threats (UN, 2009). ...
... For example, an action research study on the EndSARS protests conducted by Dubawa, the leading Nigerian fact-checking site concludes that with a frequency of over 50%, the content analysis of fact-check of claims on #EndSARS protests showed images were the most manipulated content (Jamiu, 2020). increased criminality, particularly in cyberspace and transnational organised crime, pose a threat to national security (KPMG, 2014;Kuol & Amegbo, 2021;Ojo, 2020). ...
The first quarter of the 21st century has barely passed, but a barrage of ‘disrupting’
surprises emerged – from the proliferation of information and communication
technologies (ICT) to the weaponisation of ICT itself. Hence, cyberfakes or cyber
deceptions (e.g., deepfakes, fake news, and even hate speech) have the potential to
cause monumental problems related to cybersecurity and other online information
management for organisations, nations, and individuals. Because literature and
theories related to the novel cyber deceptions may be scanty, this chapter attempted
to close this research and theoretical gaps by deriving concepts leading to the
development of a ‘modelled framework’ for the study of deepfakes and other related cyber deceptions and violence in social, organisational, or national contexts.
Performing brainstorming reviews of extant literature, several theoretical concepts
were derived leading to the development of the unified model of digital deception
and online hate pronouncement. Policy recommendations were offered at the end.
This chapter provides a contextual analysis of the key issues and current trends in Africa vis-à-vis corruption and sustainable development, the resultant challenges for security, and the implications for peace, security, and stability on the continent. Africa is deemed to be at a crossroads currently, slowly moonwalking its way to nowhere as corruption rages, development stagnates, and peace and security therefore become elusive. It is shown why some combination of predatory behavior, insecurity and instability, and bad governance have all been identified and proven to be the reasons for the lack of sustainable development on the continent.
A report on the empirical linkages between democracy and security with policy recommendations
The sate-centered understanding of security has been changed to people-centered security, specially, in the post-cold war era. Africa, though showing great effort in the maintenance of peace and security in the continent, still faces a challenge in maintaining human security. The Horn of Africa is one of the most conflict ravaged regions in the continent. It has encountered, inter alia, political exclusion/power struggle, ethnic and religious based discrimination, piracy, terrorism, violation of human rights, proliferation of SALW, poverty/famine as a major threat to human security. The study calls for regional states to take comprehensive, integrated and prevention-oriented response both individually and collectively to reduce the dangers of human security in the region.
This analysis draws from security and state spending data to measure the human security experience in South Sudan. The results show a more volatile security environment following independence. Defence expenditure and human security, as measured in the number of insecurity episodes, are unrelated. Descriptive evidence indicates that human security and security expenditure tend to vary unpredictably over time, a signal that security sector spending is unresponsive to the country's security predicaments. The Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) models suggest the same: security sector spending does not contain local insecurity. Instead, more defence investment seems to correlate with insecurity; an additional 1% spent on security translates to at least 60 deaths. This finding reflects the importance of reviewing South Sudan's security sector in order to properly situate the reforms currently outlined in Chapter II of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS). As these reforms get implemented, security sector expenditures need strict oversight, with improved accountability measures integrated to minimise inefficiencies and foster sustainable socioeconomic and security results. Lastly, recent improvements in the security situation, as represented by significant reductions in violence, should be strategically leveraged to enable greater public confidence and trust in the recently inaugurated R-ARCSS.
After its hard-won independence in 2011, South Sudan slid quickly into violent conflict and became a theatre of enormous human suffering. This article attempts to answer the question of what went wrong, and what prospects exist for South Sudanese to forge a resilient social contract to build and sustain peace. It employs an analytical framework postulating three drivers of such a contract, at the heart of which is how core issues of conflict that underpin violent conflict and fragility have been addressed. The research findings underscore that the way the ruling elites managed the transition to statehood, the development of exclusive weak institutions, and frail social cohesion have all served to undermine peace and the development of a resilient social contract. Core issues of conflict have not been addressed, witnessed by the eruption of civil war in 2013. While the 2015 Peace Agreement provides, at least on paper, the basis for forging a new social contract that holds promise for sustaining peace, building inclusive institutions and nurturing social cohesion, its realization requires political will, strategic leadership, and a national vision, which are currently in short supply.
The work aims at answering the question as to how far discourses on human security are present in Jordan and Israel, if they converge and if political solutions for the issue of water security could be derived. The analysis is based on the assumption that from human security perspective common solutions for urgent problems can be derived more easily than out of a perspective of national security. Yet it is acknowledged that according to a new security perspective different security threats are being identified by relevant actors. An empirical analysis of written statements and utterances of the respective security elites establishes the methodological tool for the identification of human security discourses in Israel and Jordan. Subsequently it is estimated how far water is presented as a matter of national security in Israel and Jordan using the theory of securitization.
In this article, I examine how the concept of strategy has evolved into the field of strategic management. A definition of strategic management is developed from commonalities of past definitions and a selected overview of approaches to operationalizing strategic management is presented.
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