Partners or competitors?

In PRIF Report No. 115 Matthias Dembinski, Jörg Krempel and Berenike Schott analyse African and European actors in peacekeeping and peacebuilding

Although prospects for peacekeeping and peacebuilding in Africa have significantly improved since the end of the East-West conflict, creating the conditions for lasting peace nevertheless remains a challenge. While liberal peace as ideological frame and strong regional security organisations (RSOs) account for positive impacts and great potential, their effectiveness remains a hope, rather than a given.



PRIF Report No. 115 "Towards Effective Security Governance in Africa" contributes to the debate on the effectiveness of peacekeeping/ peacebuilding on the African continent by analysing the policies and activities of the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU) as well as some of its member states regarding two global norms: a) Protection of Civilians (POC) as one task of peacekeeping operations and b) Security Sector Reform (SSR).



Based on the examples of Darfur, Chad, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe, Matthias Dembinski, Jörg Krempel and Berenike Schott find that the similar interpretation of doctrines is promising and can be considered an indicator that a layered system of global security governance based on strong and connected RSOs could be both effective and legitimate. However, this alignment of doctrines remains fragile and does not always translate into increased effectiveness at the local level due to three classes of frictions the report identifies.

 

The Report can be ordered at PRIF for EUR 10,- and is also available as free PDF download.