What challenges do West African parliaments face in carrying out effective oversight of the security sector? This publication from the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces examines challenges and opportunities for parliamentary oversight of the security sector in West Africa. It argues that, despite some progress, West African states have a long way to go to establish adequate parliamentary oversight of the security sector.
While West African parliaments generally have the authority for oversight of the security sector, they often lack the necessary ability and attitude to do so. Parliaments often display excessive deference to the executive branch on security matters. There is a lack of national consensus on security, meaning that the oversight function lacks coherence and purpose. West African parliaments have provided weak oversight of military budgets and shied away from investigating major security incidents and overseeing the intelligence sector. On the positive side, parliamentary oversight and the need for checks and balance are now universally accepted in the region.
At the regional level, the ECOWAS Parliament is an example of an under-resourced mechanism for peacebuilding with great potential to contribute to sustainable peace. To this end it requires greater authority and a more engaged attitude, which can only be achieved by direct election of ECOWAS parliamentarians. At the national level, findings include the following:
- In Benin, institutional, logistical and human resource weaknesses have hindered effective implementation of a long-asserted principle of parliamentary oversight of the security sector.
- The experience of the security sector in Ghana’s politics has had a positive impact on its attitude towards oversight. Parliamentarians lack resources and expertise on security issues, but are willing to learn and cooperate with civil society organisations.
- Liberian parliamentarians, being mostly ‘first-timers’ in the legislature, lack the required ability to make effective use of their power to oversee the security sector.
- Mali’s measures to institutionalise and regularise positive civil-military relations can be cited as best practices for other West African states to follow.
- Nigeria’s legislature has the authority and ability to undertake effective oversight. However, its will to do so has been hampered by corruption and a lack of democratic culture.
- Senegal’s parliament has the authority to carry out oversight. However, its Committee on Defence and Security displays neither the ability or attitude to meet its obligations.
Parliaments and other actors in West Africa must strive to establish the following in each state:
- Recognition by the executive of parliament’s role as a co-equal branch of government and its role in security sector governance in particular;
- The creation or strengthening of support for, and close collaboration with, organs of inspection, audit and oversight within security sector agencies and bodies;
- A parliament that asserts itself as a guardian of republican principles and a counterweight to the executive, particularly on security and human rights issues;
- A parliament eager to upgrade its capacity in security matters and willing to monitor and, if necessary, investigate in depth developments in the security sector;
- Parliament’s willingness to work with civil society organisations and external actors, such as donors, experts and regional actors, to strengthen oversight of the security sector; and
- A citizenry that is aware of its constitutional rights in security matters and willing to exercise its rights and responsibilities fully.
