644 Joram Mukama Biswaro Joram Mukama Biswaro ver the past five decades, independent Africa has faced various forms of conflicts. The conflicts have ranged from inter-state to intra-state, and due his book brings an important con- to this sad state of affairs, the continent has been characterized negatively tribution for the comprehension as war torn and hopeless. All bad things have been associated with Africa. of the socio-economic dimension of The causes of these conflicts are varied. They have included mismanagement Africa, as well as the difficulties faced of natural resources, corruption, bad governance, lack of rule of raw, nepotism, The Role of Regional Integration Tby the African countries due to a high ethnicity and regional imbalance. The effects of these conflicts are immense. prevalence of conflicts. The author ob- serves that some sources of conflicts T People have lost lives and properties. Some have been reduced to refugees and M in Conflict Prevention, HE ANAGEMENT are purely internal reflecting the dy- even internally displaced persons. R namics of a particular sub-region, while O OLE Management, and Resolution in others have an international dimen- To address this, both continental and sub-regional organizations have all along OF sion. Conflict prevention demands a created mechanisms the likes of the Commission of Mediation, Conciliation and R , Africa EGIONAL AND great deal of prudence and skills in e- rof. Joram M. Biswaro is the pre- Arbitration (CMCA), the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and valuating situations, as well as political sent Ambassador of Tanzania to Resolution (MCPMR) and the late Peace and Security Council (PSC). Whether R ESOLUTION will. Besides that, Biswaro’s book em- Ethiopia, and his country’s Permanent the constant creation of these mechanisms has brought qualitative change in the I NTEGRATION phasizes the United Nations Security Representative to the African Union performance of OAU/AU or not, that is part of the reason for undertaking this study. The Case of African Union Council (UNSC) on establishing peace (AU) and the United Nations Economic and security in the world, and the role PCommission for Africa (UNECA). The All these tools have operated within the context of Chapter 6 of the UN Charter IN A of regional organizations in preventing, that recognizes the role of Regional Organizations in such matters. Within the IN Author has also served his country in FRICA C managing and resolving disputes. a similar capacity in Latin America, African context, the OAU/AU along with sub-regional organizations the likes of ONFLICT residing in Brasilia, Brazil. He has SADC, ECOWAS and ECCAS have rose to the challenge. lectured in various universities around the globe. Currently, he is a visiting There have so far been successes and failures in this endeavor. The buzzword is P REVENTION professor at the Pan African University African solutions to African problems. Challenges have included the lack of both Yaoundé, Cameroon, as well as the human and financial resources. Institute for Peace and Security Studies, This book attempts to trace and evaluate the performance of various mechanisms , Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia. Prof. created by OAU/AU since its inception in 1963 to deal with this situation. Different Biswaro has also written extensively on regional integration, peace and security case studies are referred to in this work, namely Burundi, DRC, Rwanda, Ethiopia in Africa. and Eritrea. Besides the challenges facing the AU today, the organization is trying to operationalize the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA). This framework is on track with its main components, namely the African Standby Force, the Panel of the Wise, the Continental Early Warning System and the Peace Fund. Pros and Cons of this framework are extensively interrogated. The book ends with some pertinent observations and recommendations worth considering if the continent is to avoid marginalization in the twenty first century. ISBN 857631436-3 9 788576 314363 www.funag.gov.br Fundação Alexandre de Gusmão 644 Joram Mukama Biswaro Joram Mukama Biswaro ver the past five decades, independent Africa has faced various forms of conflicts. The conflicts have ranged from inter-state to intra-state, and due his book brings an important con- to this sad state of affairs, the continent has been characterized negatively tribution for the comprehension as war torn and hopeless. All bad things have been associated with Africa. of the socio-economic dimension of The causes of these conflicts are varied. They have included mismanagement Africa, as well as the difficulties faced of natural resources, corruption, bad governance, lack of rule of raw, nepotism, The Role of Regional Integration Tby the African countries due to a high ethnicity and regional imbalance. The effects of these conflicts are immense. prevalence of conflicts. The author ob- serves that some sources of conflicts T People have lost lives and properties. Some have been reduced to refugees and M in Conflict Prevention, HE ANAGEMENT are purely internal reflecting the dy- even internally displaced persons. R namics of a particular sub-region, while O OLE Management, and Resolution in others have an international dimen- To address this, both continental and sub-regional organizations have all along OF sion. Conflict prevention demands a created mechanisms the likes of the Commission of Mediation, Conciliation and R , Africa EGIONAL AND great deal of prudence and skills in e- rof. Joram M. Biswaro is the pre- Arbitration (CMCA), the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and valuating situations, as well as political sent Ambassador of Tanzania to Resolution (MCPMR) and the late Peace and Security Council (PSC). Whether R ESOLUTION will. Besides that, Biswaro’s book em- Ethiopia, and his country’s Permanent the constant creation of these mechanisms has brought qualitative change in the I NTEGRATION phasizes the United Nations Security Representative to the African Union performance of OAU/AU or not, that is part of the reason for undertaking this study. The Case of African Union Council (UNSC) on establishing peace (AU) and the United Nations Economic and security in the world, and the role PCommission for Africa (UNECA). The All these tools have operated within the context of Chapter 6 of the UN Charter IN A of regional organizations in preventing, that recognizes the role of Regional Organizations in such matters. Within the IN Author has also served his country in FRICA C managing and resolving disputes. a similar capacity in Latin America, African context, the OAU/AU along with sub-regional organizations the likes of ONFLICT residing in Brasilia, Brazil. He has SADC, ECOWAS and ECCAS have rose to the challenge. lectured in various universities around the globe. Currently, he is a visiting There have so far been successes and failures in this endeavor. The buzzword is P REVENTION professor at the Pan African University African solutions to African problems. Challenges have included the lack of both Yaoundé, Cameroon, as well as the human and financial resources. Institute for Peace and Security Studies, This book attempts to trace and evaluate the performance of various mechanisms , Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia. Prof. created by OAU/AU since its inception in 1963 to deal with this situation. Different Biswaro has also written extensively on regional integration, peace and security case studies are referred to in this work, namely Burundi, DRC, Rwanda, Ethiopia in Africa. and Eritrea. Besides the challenges facing the AU today, the organization is trying to operationalize the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA). This framework is on track with its main components, namely the African Standby Force, the Panel of the Wise, the Continental Early Warning System and the Peace Fund. Pros and Cons of this framework are extensively interrogated. The book ends with some pertinent observations and recommendations worth considering if the continent is to avoid marginalization in the twenty first century. ISBN 857631436-3 9 788576 314363 www.funag.gov.br Fundação Alexandre de Gusmão The Role of Regional Integration in Conflict Prevention, Management, and Resolution in Africa The Case of African Union MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL RELATIONS Foreign Minister Ambassador Antonio de Aguiar Patriota Secretary-General Ambassador Eduardo dos Santos ALEXANDRE DE GUSMÃO FOUNDATION President Ambassador José Vicente de Sá Pimentel Research Institute of International Relations Center for Diplomatic History and Documents Director Ambassador Maurício E. Cortes Costa The Alexandre de Gusmão Foundation (Funag) was established in 1971. It is a public foundation linked to the Ministry of External Relations whose goal is to provide civil society with information concerning the international scenario and aspects of the Brazilian diplomatic agenda. The Foundation’s mission is to foster awareness of the domestic public opinion with regard to international relations issues and Brazilian foreign policy. Ministry of External Relations Esplanada dos Ministérios, Bloco H Anexo II, Térreo, Sala 1 70170-900 Brasília-DF Telephones: +55 (61) 2030-6033/6034 Fax: +55 (61) 2030-9125 Website: www.funag.gov.br Joram Mukama Biswaro The Role of Regional Integration in Conflict Prevention, Management, and Resolution in Africa The Case of African Union Brasília – 2013 Copyright © Fundação Alexandre de Gusmão Ministério das Relações Exteriores Esplanada dos Ministérios, Bloco H Anexo II, Térreo, Sala 1 70170-900 Brasília-DF Telephones: +55 (61) 2030-6033/6034 Fax: +55 (61) 2030-9125 Website: www.funag.gov.br E-mail: [email protected] Editorial Staff: Eliane Miranda Paiva Fernanda Antunes Siqueira Guilherme Lucas Rodrigues Monteiro Jessé Nóbrega Cardoso Vanusa dos Santos Silva Graphic Design: Daniela Barbosa Layout: Gráfica e Editora Ideal Impresso no Brasil 2013 B623r Biswaro, Joram Mukama. The role of regional integration in conflict prevention, management, and resolution in Africa : the case of African Union / Joram Mukama Biswaro – Brasília : FUNAG, 2013. 378 p. - (Coleção teses de CAE ) ISBN 978-85-7631-436-3 1.