v Preface This volume is the result of the combined efforts of a number of indi- viduals and organisations across the African continent, and beyond. It represents the continuation of a collaborative effort by the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) and the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) to explore and promote understanding of the complex dimensions and causes of conflicts in Africa, with a focus on environ- mental aspects of conflict. ACTS is an inter-governmental policy research and training organi- zation located in Nairobi, Kenya. The centre’s mission is to strengthen the capacity of African countries and institutions to harness science and technology for sustainable development. As part of its programme on biodiversity and environmental governance, ACTS promotes better understanding of the links between biodiversity, livelihoods, resource rights, gender and conflicts, as well as effective prevention and manage- ment of conflicts involving natural resources. The ISS is a regional applied policy research institute with offices in Pretoria and Cape Town with a mission to conceptualise, inform and enhance the security debate in Africa. The Institute undertakes research and analysis; supports policy formulation; awareness-raising; collect- ing, interpreting and disseminating information at national, regional and international levels, and capacity-building. The publishers would like to thank Chris Huggins for coordinating this research; the country study researchers, Herman Musaraha, Prisca Kamungi-Mulemi, Johnstone Summit Oketch, and Koen Vlassenroot for their invaluable expert input; and Johan Pottier for so generously donat- ing his time to the project. We would also like to recognise the contribu- tions of numerous staff members at ACTS, especially Benson Mak’ Ochieng who, as a researcher, lent his experience to one of the chapters, Joan Kariuki who was the research assistant on this project, Mary Muthoni and Harrison Maganga of the publications and outreach department, and Elvin Nyukuri for logistical assistance. We also appre- ciate the input of the peer reviewers for three chapters, Makumi Mwagiru, Arnaud Royer, and Kizito Sabala; as well as John Katunga, civil servants of the government of Rwanda, and an international land tenure specialist who were especially helpful informants. Most of all, we are thankful for the many men and women who provided information, views and opinions during fieldwork in Burundi, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda. At ISS we would like to thank Jenny Clover and Jean-Marie Gasana for their input into the field research in Burundi, and to João Porto for his gen- erous donation of time and expertise in overseeing the editing. Furthermore, we wish to thank the civil society organizations and individuals in Angola who provided information, guidance and support during the course of field research, as well as peer review of the completed chapter. vi Some of the chapters in the book have been presented in draft form at various seminars and conferences, especially a conference on Land Tenure and Conflict in Africa held at ACTS in December 2004, and we thank all those who participated and provided comments, especially the Burundian, Congolese, and Rwandan diplomats and civil servants who attended. Given the dynamic nature of African politics, it is important to point out that much of the research was completed in mid-2004, though the chapters have been updated to reflect changes since that time. Finally, we would like to thank the United States Agency for International Development’s Regional Economic Development and Services Office for Eastern and Southern Africa (REDSO/ESA) for its generous support. We particularly appreciate the intellectual and administrative support of Andy Sissons, Diana Putman, Walter Knausenberger, Mary Hobbs, Peter Ewell, Steve Smith, Njeri Karuru, Wangeci Chege, David Kinyua and the other personnel who have assisted in one way or another. It should be recognized that the contents of this book are wholly attributable to the authors and do not in any way represent the views of the individuals and institutions acknowledged. Judi Wakhungu and Jakkie Cilliers ACTS and ISS Nairobi and Pretoria vii List of Contributors Jenny Clover is a Senior Researcher with the African Security Analysis Programme at the Institute for Security Studies. She focusses on human security issues with a special interest in environmental matters. Chris Huggins is a Research Fellow at the African Centre for Technology Studies, and was co-ordinator of the project entitled Preventing Conflict through Improved Policies on Land Tenure, Natural Resource Rights, and Migration in the Great Lakes Region. Prisca Kamungi-Mulemi is currently the Programme Coordinator and Research Fellow at the Institute of Peace Studies and International Relations, a college of the Catholic University of Eastern Africa. She is also pursuing a doctorate at the University of Nairobi and has researched extensively on conflict issues and forced migration in East Africa. Herman Musaraha is a lecturer in Economics at the University of Rwanda, Butare, and possesses a PhD in Development Studies from the University of the Western Cape, South Africa. He has previously written on poverty, land, education and development in Rwanda. Benson Mak’ Ochieng, a lawyer by training, is a Research Fellow at the African Centre for Technology Studies and has written widely on environ- mental policy issues in East Africa. He coordinates the Pan-African Programme on Land and Resource Rights, which is currently hosted by ACTS. Johnstone Summit Oketch is Desk Officer for Burundi at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. He has pre- viously written on Burundi in the Volume entitled ‘Scarcity and Surfeit: the Ecology of Africa’s Conflicts’ published by ACTS and ISS in 2002. Johan Pottier is a Professor of Anthropology at the School for Oriental and African Studies and the University of London. He has published extensively on the Great Lakes region, with a focus on Rwanda and east- ern DRC. His most recent major publication is Re-Imagining Rwanda: Conflict, Survival and Disinformation in the Late Twentieth Century, pub- lished by Cambridge University Press in 2002. Koen Vlassenroot is a Professor in Political Science and coordinator of the Conflict Research Group at the University of Ghent. He has authored and edited a number of publications on conflict issues in the eastern DRC. 1 Introduction CHRIS HUGGINS AND JENNY CLOVER CONFLICTS IN AFRICA For many people the word ‘Africa’ has become synonymous with con- flict and the various stages of conflict. There are continuing civil con- flicts; countries in danger of descent into conflict; countries facing renewed conflict; countries economically, socially or militarily affected by neighbouring conflicts; countries directly involved in neighbouring conflicts; and countries in transition from war to peace. Over the past three decades, more than seventy wars have been fought in Africa. The total magnitude of armed conflict increased in the period from the 1950s to the 1980s, then declined sharply after the Cold War ended in 1991, and during the 1990s fluctuated between escalation and de-escalation. There are now a growing number of new conflicts in Africa that are increasingly violent and protracted. At the beginning of the new century, armed conflicts afflicted 16 of Africa’s 54 countries, and the average duration of conflicts being fought was 22 years, while their median duration was 17 years.1 This new generation of violence is par- ticularly threatening, not only for the countries involved, but also more broadly for regional and international security. More importantly, peace is often fragile, making it difficult to apply the term ‘post-conflict’ to many countries – in most cases there is a precarious balance between renewed conflict and sustained peace. Increasingly countries are caught in a ‘conflict trap’: emerging from conflict but maintaining only a fragile, ‘negative’ peace; caught in an underdevelopment-conflict cycle. In fact, of the countries that are in their first decade of post-conflict peace, an estimated half will fall back into conflict within the decade. Whereas internal conflict has been previously seen as a ‘political’ issue to be addressed by the government concerned, the importance of multi- stakeholder responses is increasingly being acknowledged. The African Union, for example, is trying to tackle the thorny issue of national sover- eignty and ensure that internal conflicts are addressed through regional strategies where necessary. Different kinds of actors have become involved in working on conflict issues. Even institutions which have traditionally focused on one aspect only – for example, humanitarian aid – are finding it necessary to adopt a more comprehensive approach to conflict analysis and conflict prevention. Donor organisations increas- ingly place conflict-prevention or conflict-resolution at the heart of their strategies; non-governmental organisations working in conflict-affected areas are attempting to make connections between ‘humanitarian’ responses, which are often based on delivery of relief supplies, and 2 From the ground up ‘development’ activities which seek to be more sustainable; the United Nations response to conflict is now tailored not only to addressing vio- lence through diplomacy and peacekeeping operations, but to operation- alising structural prevention strategies, which, in the words of the Secretary General, Kofi Annan, “address the political, social,