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By Christian Ichite
Strategies to durably address violent extremism (VE) and terrorism in Africa appear increasingly obsolete. In 2020 and 2021, seasoned African peace and security capacity-building experts of the African Peace Support Trainers Association (APSTA) decried this obsolescence on the basis of their research findings and policy dialogues. More recently, African heads of state and governments have been seized with this concern, as expressed during the African Union’s 16th extraordinary summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. Moreover, lessons from missions, especially AMISOM (now ATMIS), MNJTF and the G5 Sahel Joint Force affirm the growing audacity of terrorists and violent extremist groups (VEGs) vis-à-vis militarized responses across Africa.
Datasets on trends and dynamics of extremism and terrorism depict an expanding territorial influence and resilience in Africa. In 2020, the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED) estimated that violent extremism, driven by religious/ethnic fundamentalism, accounted for about 7,180 attacks targeting civilians and resulting in 12,519 fatalities. In the 2022 Global Terrorism Index (GTI, 2022), sub-Saharan Africa emerged as global epicentre of terrorism, as global deaths decline, while the region accounted for 48 per cent of global terrorism deaths. The 2022 GTI estimates also show a 70 per cent annual increase in violent events linked to militant Islamist groups in the Sahel, which propelled a new record of extremist violence in Africa in 2021. Sadly, terrorism and violent extremism account for over 80 per cent of humanitarian needs – about $14 billion across Africa.
Furthermore, experts affirm three interlinked elements as reasons for the expansion of VEGs across the continent, viz: a concordance of local tactics with trans-national ambitions; flexible tactics; and the ability to take advantage of opponents’ gaffes – particularly the high-handedness of defence and security forces in Africa. In all cases, localised grievances have combined with other elements to fuel successful geographic spread of VEGs, especially Salafi-jihadists. Today, all sub-regions of Africa have experienced very active trans-border VEGs due to worsening capacity deficits on preventing and countering violent extremism (PCVE) and countering terrorism (CT). Therefore, 10 domains of critical capacity deficits are isolated and briefly discussed subsequently.
In this section, 10 domains of requisite capacities for PCVE and CT, including the management of forced displacements across the continent, are considered. Accordingly, APSTA experts underpinned an increasing non-adequation of extant capacities to the evolving trends, dynamics, and rapid evolution of VEGs across Africa.
First, the contents and delivery methodology of a significant number of peace and security training courses have become overtly academic. This is in sharp contrast to their intended operational utility. As such, the balance is being lost between theoretical and performance-oriented training and delivery design. For instance, conflict analysis training has become less performance-oriented and less operational. To revert this trend, this training must be operationalized to better serve the purpose of recommending best course of action during interventions.
Moreover, conflict analysis training increasingly de-emphasizes ‘systems thinking’. The latter plays a crucial role in affording actors a broad-based, holistic and in-depth analysis for planning interventions. Unfortunately, the prevailing and pervading simplistic handling of conflict analysis module short-changes capacities for comprehensive solutions. In addition, modules on primacy of politics, peacebuilding, human rights, civil affairs as well as accountability frameworks must be accorded greater importance, including necessary details on each in the course curriculum and during training courses.
Second, the efficacy of interventions is being atrophied by a number of leadership capacity deficits. Notably, there are grave concerns over lack of requisite knowledge of critical policy and institutional frameworks; selection of non-qualified participants for leadership training; faulty leadership training methodology; and non-deployment of the qualified and trained candidates. These have occasioned a declining effectiveness of interventions. Therefore, prospective intervention leaders must be selected and trained based on stipulated criteria, aptitudes as well as oversight by designated institutions. Moreover, the quality of training facilitation and mentorship must be standardized, while aptly integrating new technology and communication strategy.
Third, mainstreaming gender, especially role of females in PCVE and CT in Africa, must address socio-cultural and political huddles, including family obligations and societal expectations. Females are generally latecomers to interventions. As such, they require specialized training on corresponding capacities. Therefore, able and willing females must be capacitated to serve in substantive roles and not mere supporting or tactical tasks. Their deployment to missions must be accorded as a ‘right’ – akin to their male counterparts, and not as a ‘favour’, which is the prevailing mentality. Females remain critical to the success of interventions, as demonstrated by most female peacekeepers, wherever they had been deployed.
Fourth, capacities for de-radicalization still appear very clumsy across the continent. Experts ascribe these anomalies to a number of factors, including insufficient qualified professionals; insufficient and inappropriate infrastructure; vague curriculum and scarce curriculum development expertise; lack of updated guidance frameworks for training and development of capacity on deradicalization; and especially, gross inadequacy of funding support to training/research institutions targeted at addressing this challenge. These have to be addressed as matter of urgency, across affected regions.
Fifth, capacities for protection against recruitment and use of children in armed conflicts are still challenged by a number of setbacks. These include weak juridical frameworks, absence of politico-juridical strategies and targeted strategic communication. Thus, child soldiery phenomenon continues to fuel conflict intractability across sub-Saharan Africa in particular. Addressing this menace requires close collaboration between partners and national/regional responders across the continent.
Sixth, countering terrorism financing (TF) remains constrained by a litany of capacity deficits. Topmost on the list are a lack of understanding and awareness on the complexity of the processes; limited information sharing and lack of adequate cooperation. Others are growing regionalized informal economic activities difficult to track, monitor and regulate; technological inadequacies in the face of increased criminal use of technological innovations; as well as corruption and collusion that propels and sustains the menace. Moreover, the non-implementation of recommendations from Financial Action Tasks Forces (FATF) remains a critical huddle.
Seventh, regionalized criminal justice systems still remains significantly deterred by crucial policy and institutional impediments. These include a lack of clear and well-defined inter-African legal cooperation framework as well as low capacity for human rights compliant criminal investigation and evidence gathering. In addition, handling of foreign terrorist fighters (TFTs) in accordance with UNSC Resolution 2178 of 2014 as well as capacities to address linkages between terrorist activities and organized criminal groups, remain crucial to successful PCVE in Africa. APSTA initiated regional awareness on these deficits and anticipates collaboration with more partners.
Eighth, whole-of-society approach to PCVE and CT is still unprecedently constrained across sub-Saharan Africa. Salient constraints derive largely from model of governance popular within the region, characterized by low capacities to facilitate economic empowerment; promote religious moderation; build resilience among affected local communities; reform the security sector, promote national reconciliation, and incentivize good parenting. Although lots of efforts are seemingly being made in these various spheres of governance, they are mostly without concerted efforts and carried out in silos. The joining-up of efforts must be facilitated, to reverse these trends.
Ninth, integration of Ad hoc coalitions (AHCs) into continental PCVE strategy currently confronts daunting challenges. Notably, AHCs emerged as realist-pragmatist response to deficits in African Standby Force (ASF). One crucial challenge is leveraging the contributions of AHCs by aligning their objectives to those of the ASF within its framework and without compromising their operational flexibility of AHCs. Other challenges include synchronizing the Coalitions’ military activities with regional / continental political objectives as well as transforming the Coalitions into useful ‘first responders. The African Union will need to work with key stakeholders to achieve these.
Tenth, durable solutions to forced displacements across Africa confronts severe capacity hindrances. These include various capacities for ‘returning’ displaced persons in accordance with ‘voluntary return’, as stipulated by Art. 11 (2) of the ‘Kampala Convention’ and Principles 28(2) of UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacements (UNGPI); ‘resettling’ of displaced persons as well as ‘re-integrating’ these persons into society with dignity. It is frightening that sub-Saharan Africa alone accounts for 80.4% of global internal displacements caused by conflicts and violence in 2021.
Thus, on the basis of APSTA’s research, policy dialogues and colloquia on preventing and countering violent extremism and countering terrorism in sub-Saharan Africa, ten (10) domains of critical capacity deficits are flagged and recommendations proffered to key stakeholders, including governmental and non-governmental actors, and particularly defence and security training / capacity building institutions.
In light of the foregoing, these stakeholders should re-establish the balance between academic and performance-oriented dimensions of training/capacity building on Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism and Countering Terrorism; rejig mission leadership training through rigorous selection process for prospective leaders as well as improve quality of training facilitation and course mentorship;
Prioritize and incentivize the integration of more females into operational and strategic-level defence and security training/capacity building in sub-Saharan Africa;
Support training/research institutions on development or enhancement of policy and institutional frameworks, for inter-African criminal justice system and countering Terrorism Financing;
Incentivize whole-of-society approach to Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism and Countering Terrorism, with emphasis on building resilience of communities at risk.
Mr. Ichite is a Research Fellow and be reached and Deputy Executive Secretary, APSTA. He can be reached via [email protected]
