Africa and Ethnic Conflict Management: A Comparative Study of Nigeria and South Africa

Abstract

This paper proposes, among other things, that ethnic conflicts in Africa are fallout of colonialism. Relying on the comparative study of Nigeria and South Africa, it is the contention in this paper that ethnic conflict which has been at the heart of African countries development problem is a product of skewed economy, authoritarian governance and religious bigotry. There is no gainsaying the fact that African countries in contemporary times contend with greater challenges to peaceand stability than ever before. Conflicts igniting factors in Africa have been a hotch - potch of insecurity, instability and poverty manifesting in hunger and starvation. All these are themselves products of corrupt and rapacious political institutions that assumed power in the African countries. This has been the case in countries of sub-Saharan Africa like Sierra-Leone, Ivory Coast, Liberia and the Democratic Republicof Congo. The contention therefore in this paper is that conflict has become a reoccurring decimal in Africa because the countries lack political will and consequently ineffective in conflict management. This paper is also meant to be a contribution towards the ongoing search for new means of managing ethnic conflict in Africa. The paper compares the management of ethnic conflicts in Nigeria and South Africa witha view to underscoring the intricacies in managing deep-rooted and complex conflicts in Africa.