DISCUSSION PAPER 01/2020 The African Security Intersection Pathways to Partnership
Greg Mills
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Strengthening Africa’s economic performance The African Security Intersection Pathways to Partnership
Contents
Introduction ...... 4 The Threats We Know About ...... 5 A Weak Polity ...... 7 .. .. Mali: It’s About Politics ...... 9 .. Old Problems, New Situations ...... 11 .. .. New Challenges We Know About ...... 15 Digital Promise – and Threat ...... 17 Current External Governance and Security ‘Solutions’ ...... 20 Principles to a New Security Approach ...... 21 Ancient History: Limits to the Impact of Outsiders ...... 22 .. A More Careful Calibration of Assistance ...... 24 .. Conclusion: Truth to Power ...... 26 .. .. Endnotes ...... 28
About the Author Dr Greg Mills heads the Johannesburg-based Published in January 2020 by The Brenthurst Brenthurst Foundation .. He is, most recently, the co- Foundation author of Democracy Works: Rewiring Politics to Africa’s The Brenthurst Foundation Advantage (Johannesburg/London: Panmacmillan/ (Pty) Limited Hurst, 2019) and The Asian Aspiration: Why and PO Box 61631, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa How Africa Should Emulate Asia (Johannesburg: Tel +27-(0)11 274-2096 Panmacmillan, forthcoming 2020) .. He sits on the Fax +27-(0)11 274-2097 Advisory Board of the Royal United Services Institute .. www ..thebrenthurstfoundation ..org This Discussion Paper was prepared for the African All rights reserved .. The material in this publication Security Dialogue, co-hosted by Ditchley Park, the may not be reproduced, stored, or transmitted without the prior permission of the publisher .. Short Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Africa Center for Strategic extracts may be quoted, provided the source is fully Studies, and The Brenthurst Foundation in January acknowledged .. 2020 .. The cover image of Africa was originally produced by the OCP Layout and design by Sheaf Publishing, Benoni .. THE AFRICAN SECURITY INTERSECTION
Executive Summary Africa is projected to double its population numbers to 2 ..5 billion by 2050 ..The consequences of failing to change current aid practices in Africa are moot .. The combination of rapidly increasing populations plus fragile and often corrupt systems of governance producing insufficient and elite-focused economic opportunities, can only end badly – an outcome which is worsened if climate change is thrown into the mix, which could see even larger numbers of people in already climate-stressed areas on the move to greener pastures .. A successful donor strategy needs to play to its strengths and values, make tough choices about priorities and countries, make support more contingent on African performance on these shared values and interests and, fundamentally, develop a positive and consistent narrative .. It would have to incorporate incentives to encourage African leadership and ownership of problems, national and regional, while at the same time realising the inherent dangers of transactionalism, including with African engagement in regional peace support missions .. The answer to African security lies in paradoxically recognising the limits of the role to be played by the military, and rather stresses the need to infuse political and economic content .. This demands brutally honest if unpalatable professional advice to political leaders, both among the donors and the recipients ..
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‘[W]ithin the idea of confrontation and conflict, the opponent is both a military and political being – meaning that focusing on and overcoming the resistance of the one without reference to the other will not lead to the desired strategic outcome.’ – General Sir Rupert Smith1
including energy politics (such as the Nord Stream Introduction 2 pipeline), bribery and blackmail, corrupt busi- ness practices, cyber-attacks, assassination, fake In October 2019, 43 of Africa’s 54 heads of state news, and election tampering .. In his February attended the Russia–Africa summit at the Black 2019 testimony before the Senate Armed Forces Sea resort of Sochi, co-chaired by Vladimir Putin Committee, the then head of the US Africa and Egypt’s president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi 2.. This Command (AFRICOM) Thomas Waldhauser occasion was only the tip, it seemed, of a much noted ‘the harmful influence of non-African wider relationship iceberg, underneath lurking a powers on the continent ’.. Both the General, and range of military engagements, commercial con- his successor Stephen Townsend, spoke of the tracts, and growing involvement in African politics .. ‘malign’ influence of China and Russia 4.. In his speech at the summit’s plenary session, the Russian president told his guests the current level of trade between Moscow and the conti- China and Russia appear to nent was ‘not enough’ and that ‘In the next four share the goal of diminishing to five years I think we should be able to double this trade, at least’ .. Putin touted Russia’s ‘debt-for- Western influence on the development swap’ programmes which were not ‘contingent’, he said, ‘upon .. .. preconditions’ world-stage, and now in Africa thereby shackling a country’s trade and economic preferences .. ‘We see how an array of Western Yet the challenges presented by Russia to the countries are resorting to pressure, intimidation, West in Africa are quite different to those posed by and blackmail of sovereign African governments,’ China .. Whereas China is the world’s largest mili- said the Russian 3.. tary force (at least in manpower) and the world’s From a Western vantage, this change of tack second-largest economy (behind the US) to back is threatening .. Russia is viewed as an expert in up its claims of achieving great power status by ‘hybrid’ warfare, mixing conventional and uncon- 2049, Russia’s trajectory is different, based more ventional weaponry with tactics battle tested in on its appetite for risk, combat experience, and Ukraine and Syria .. With an emphasis on rapid expeditionary and intelligence capabilities .. While pre-emption without long mobilisation, expedi- on different strategic trajectories, both China and tionary movement and electronic warfare, the Russia appear to share the goal of diminishing military aspect is but one of the instruments of Western influence on the world-stage, and now in national power Russia is now poised to employ .. Africa .. This is unlikely to be good news for Africans These tools form part of an integrated politico- as much as it is for human rights given the clear military ‘system’ warfare, aimed at de-legitimising correlation between the quality of African democ- and undermining the West’s political and social racies and economic performance 5.. And both are cohesion on which its military strength and stead- focused on transactional opportunities, hence fastness is founded, including the rules-based, their appeal to certain African elites, and thus post-1945 global security architecture .. are not interested in strengthening democratic In this environment, the weapons of governance .. Paradoxically, this puts them at odds war are more benign but no less dangerous: with the vast majority of Africans who routinely
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prefer democracy to other forms of government still hate to be bullied by the ‘suits’ visiting the in polls, not least since the development record of continent on two-day expeditions .. democracies is much better than the continental Changing this will demand sustained Western alternative 6.. engagement, not neglect .. The result of all of this is, as the UK Chief For Africa, it should provoke thoughts about of Defence Staff General Sir Nick Carter has how to get the most of out all suitors, even as its concluded, ‘a global playing field characterised leaders get to lap up Russian hospitality, play with by constant competition and confrontation, with sidearms in conference venues, and splash around increasingly assertive and aggressive states, uti- in Sochi’s hot springs .. Spookery, dogs of war, and lising techniques below the threshold of what we arms are not, if the track-record of history is any- would have called conventional war, all of which thing to go by, in the interests of the vast majority is overlaid by the threat of terrorism from violent of Africa’s citizens, given the close correlation extremist organisations ’.. 7 Rather than simply play between African standards of democracy, govern- to Western paranoia, the increased level of Russian ance and economic performance .. activity and interest in Africa should, however, Several questions arise, in turn, as to the provoke several wake-up calls for policy teams in trajectory of African security and the synergy it the West .. enjoys (or not) with its partners, which this paper There is more to African engagement than the considers: What is the nature of modern security poles of counter-terrorism at one end or traditional threats in Africa? What role can the military play development assistance at the other .. The Russians in African security? Does good governance have a have a powerful if short-term strategy with their role in dealing with security and insulating Africa incentivisation of African countries in propping from negative external actors? If so, what is the up dictators, fiddling elections and selling arms, role of Western militaries and other institutions the West has a more powerful tool in aligning in promoting good governance (if any)? How and support to democracy ..8 on what issues do external partners prioritise – and how might the international community infuse a sense of common political purpose and Rather than simply play to practical content to its assistance? From an African perspective, how can countries more Western paranoia, the increased effectively share lessons learned on similar secu- level of Russian activity and rity challenges? What role can the West play in that? Finally, what is the likely outcome and cost interest in Africa should absent a change of direction: by Africa and by its provoke several wake-up calls partners? for policy teams in the West The Threats We Know The Kremlin’s strategy towards Africa works, About Edward Lucas reminds,9 not because Russia is strong, but because the West is weak – and, also, The African continent, just 14 kilometres from not especially strategic .. The UK is increasingly Europe across the Gibraltar strait, is in the throes diplomatically invisible on the continent, except of a societal and demographic revolution which, for its attempts to seal post-Brexit trade deals absent a shift from the business-as-usual prac- in a hurry; while the US approach risks interna- tices of its polity and the policy of outsiders, can tionalising local conflicts where they are driven only further stress its politics and stability .. more by intricate domestic issues .. And less we Over a generation, Africa’s population is forget: Russia’s foreign policy direction is often in projected to double to 2 ..5 billion Most.. of this tune with the views of many African leaders, who increase will take place in its cities, which will
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accommodate over half of African citizens by 2030 .. political and hence personal stability is the under- Sixty years ago, this figure was just 10% .. lying reason so many sub-Saharan Africans say Today Africa’s 420 million young people, aged they plan to move to another country in the next five 15–35, face a daunting future .. Only one in six is in years. A remarkable 1 7.. million Ghanaians (6% of stable wage employment,10 and just 75% of them Ghana’s population) applied for the US diversity are literate – the lowest of any region globally 11.. lottery in 2015, though only 50 000 people world- With the number of young people on the conti- wide gain admission to the US each year through nent set to double within the next generation, they this programme .. will no doubt disrupt, either as an asset to govern- The roots to this move of people, within and ments or a burden .. Today’s policy decisions will without Africa, lie in the relative presence of help to determine which .. economic opportunity .. Africa – and especially sub- Already African governments and their econo- Saharan Africa – has not kept pace with the volume mies are unable to provide for this population, of people entering its job market .. Investment and whose average age is under 20, less than half that thus growth is too low, reflecting conditions of of Western Europe, resulting in a dramatic increase governance and political stability .. Africa’s share in migrants from the continent .. The Pew Research of global foreign direct investment is just 3 ..5% of Centre estimated that more than one million sub- US$1 ..3 trillion; its share of global population is Saharan Africans moved to Europe between 2010 almost 17% .. Developing Asia received, by compari- and 2017, with another 400 000 to the US over the son, US$512 billion in 2018 FDI, or nearly 40% of same period 12.. the total, closer to its global population share of 13 Figure 1: World Population Growth Projections 60% .. This is starkly portrayed by the chart, below, which reflects the rise (and fall) of Africa’s per capita income relative to East Asia .. Figure 2: Share of World GDP Per Capita (constant)