Civil Society and Arms Control in Africa

Abstract

This chapter addresses the problems associated with the proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALWs) and its consequences in Africa. It notes that the preponderance of violent conflicts in Africa that manifests in form of terrorism, insurgencies, civil wars, organized criminal violence, militancy, robberies, etc., not only fuels the spread of illegal arms but sustains them. As a corollary, thousands of people in Africa lose their lives daily as victims of the use of SALWs, millions displaced, with many more thousands wounded, raped or otherwise abused as a result of these armed violence. In total, this phenomenon has retarded development on the African continent. Building on conflict theoretical foundation, the chapter discusses the roles Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) can play in curbing the problem of SALWs circulation that has enhanced deadly clashes on the African continent. Such roles include, among others, creation of awareness on the menace of SALWs as conflict propellant in society, championing the struggle for the enthronement of people-oriented government that will culminate in reduced violent political conflicts, training local community leaders in peace-building and conflict resolution techniques, undertaking programmes to help in replacing the culture of violence with that of peace and enhancing conflict mitigation and management. These roles, the chapter admits, are not without their challenges but this does not foreclose the possibility of retracting the nuisance created by the proliferation of SALWs in Africa. The chapter recommends the review of colonial and obsolete laws on firearms in African countries, provision of enabling socio-political environments by governments across Africa amenable for CSOs to contribute toward positive change in their communities, collaboration between CSOs in Africa and their peers across the world for collective action and measures against the spread of SALWs and the need for African governments to enhance the capacities of their security agencies as indispensable steps toward overcoming the problem of illegal arms in circulation.