Repositioning African states to prudently engage the global (dis)order and advance peace, security and development

Abstract

ABSTRACT Africa is by all accounts one of the richest continents but also displays the worst in human security indexes. During colonisation, the continent was characterised by the lack of peace, insecurity and underdevelopment. Moreover, with the demise of colonialism, Africa became a geo-political stake in the rivalries of the Cold War era in a bipolar world. The main casualty in this rivalry was human security on the African continent. Internally, challenges of governance, resources lost to the continent owing to illicit financial flows and the inability of civil society to hold African states to account have also conspired to undermine human security broadly as Africans are not free from want and from fear. Considering the above, Africa remains an underdog in international politics with minimal influence in international organisations and even with less effective influence in operationalisation of international politics. In internal matters, Africa has also failed to ensure human security as a new paradigm for the continent’s realisation of peace, security and development imperatives. Employing qualitative methodology and using secondary data, this conceptual article discusses the need for repositioning African states to prudently engage the global (dis)order and advance peace, security and development.