What are the challenges of security sector (SSR) reform in West Africa? This Institute of Security Studies paper argues that challenges range from the concept of security to the freedom from dependency on the West in terms of strategic thinking and funding. The SSR agenda must concentrate on public safety, especially in urban areas. This will form a solid foundation for the internal stability that is needed for political, social and economic development.
So far the thinking and action of African SSR scholars and practitioners are fixated on the Eurocentric mode. SSR is a long-term endeavour and therefore better dealt with by dividing the agenda on the basis of: i) public safety – reform of the police and gendarmeries and access to justice; ii) internal stability – reform of the armed forces, the gendarmeries (their role in immigration or as border units and customs) and the intelligence services; iii) defence – reform with a view to promoting internal stability as the foundation for a regional SSR agenda.
The challenges for SSR in these three areas include:
- The security arrangements to deal with public safety in urban areas, which present a major challenge in many West African cities. In the past two decades, it has been recognised that the most common effect of urbanisation is a shocking increase in crime and violence.
- Internal stability, which has its roots in public safety and urban security. However, many West African countries suffer from infrastructure problems as deliveries of services are being stretched to their limits.
- Violent conflict, which continues in Nigeria, Senegal (for political and economic reasons) and recently in Mali. This violence cannot be attributed to bad governance alone, because in no country is it possible to meet the needs of all interest groups.
- Regional defence and security, where the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is slowly and surely making changes by means of the ECOWAS mechanism on conflict prevention, management, peacekeeping and security. External aggression between West or Central African states seems unlikely.
Just as people worldwide are concerned with safety in their countries, so are West Africans, and therefore the SSR agenda, which is people oriented, must concentrate on public safety, especially in urban areas.
- To ensure internal stability, the army/police or army/gendarmerie must share responsibility. However, in most cases the communities have a role to play, and their role forges another link, which should be included in the SSR agenda.
- National institutional mechanisms for political dialogue and resolution of political crises and conflict must be developed and/or strengthened as part of the SSR agenda. The alternative is coercive intervention.
- As external aggression in the West African region is unlikely, SSR should include building national institutions for sustained dialogue to arrive at internal consensus on areas that create crises in the polity.
- SSR in Africa must take into consideration the role of the military and the police/gendarmerie and it should form part of the regional SSR agenda. Such a regional association, perhaps of retired senior military and police officers, could play an important role in integrating the national SSR systems at a regional level.
