Branding Peace: International Peace Day

September 22, 2020     africa / African Union / Armed Conflicts / AU / Cabo Verde / Civil Society Organization / Comoros / CSO / Djibouti / Egypt / Ethiopia / Food security / Government / Index / Kwame Nkrumah / Mo Ibrahim / multilateral / Namibia / Nelson Mandela / nigeria / Peace / Peace Agreement / private sector / regional / Sam Nujoma / Sao Tome Principe / security / Seychelles / UN / United Nations / World

“The Charter of the United Nations expresses the noblest aspirations of man: abjuration of force in the settlement of disputes between states; the assurance of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion; the safeguarding of international peace and security.”

Today, even though we are all distanced from one another due to this global health crisis, we are gathered around the world to remember the importance of working together for Peace and to celebrate our collective progress as we all aim to achieve Peace in Africa and around the World. It is undeniable that the African continent has suffered for centuries from conflicts that have displaced nations in addition to being affected by lack of food security as well as economic opportunities. In 21st century, the results of these conflicts have eroded generational wealth and weakened institutions, impacting a youthful and interconnected African generation that is now eager to rise. What has been on the rise is the positive economic growth of African countries. However, we know that the Rising Narrative of any country around the world requires Peace.

To achieve Peace, partnership between government, private sector and civil society is pivotal given that in Africa, known as the last market frontier – with 2.5 % economic annual growth-, and with giant countries with populations exceeding 100 million (Egypt, Ethiopia, Nigeria) and with smaller countries under 1 million (Comoros, Seychelles, Djibouti, Cabo Verde, Sao Tome Principe), the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which monitors incidents of conflict around the world, found that there had been 21 600 incidents of armed conflict in Africa in 2019 (up to 30 November). So What causes these conflicts?How can we resolve or prevent these conflicts? When do we work on reconciliation and forgiveness? What’s the Way Forward?

What Causes these Conflicts?

“Peace is a day-to-day problem, the product of a multitude of events and judgments.
Peace is not an ‘is,’ it is a ‘becoming.’”

Emperor Haile Selassie

As you all know, most violent conflicts in Africa today are categorized as ‘internal’, fought between state and non-state actors or between competing non-state armed groups. On the other hand, another pattern that emerges is the transnational or regional dimension – where armed groups operate regionally, or conflict has spill over consequences due to refugee flows, links with criminal networks, interests of neighboring states or regional or international competition for influence. Other conflict trends include the proliferation of armed actors, the rise of violent Islamist extremism and an increase in political protests and riots. Much internal conflict is fuelled by a sense of exclusion or lack of access to resources, opportunities, security or justice.

A private sector leader, Mo Ibrahim, in order to promote Peace and Democracy, launched “The Ibrahim Index of African Governance “ that measures the quality of governance by looking at four categories of indicators, namely safety and rule of law, participation and human rights, sustainable economic opportunity, and human development. It shows overall improvement over the past ten years. A notable exception to the positive trend is a clear deterioration of personal safety and national security. This reflects a lack of state capacity to ensure territorial control and provide security for populations, and correlates with a proliferation of armed opposition groups competing for control over populations and resources where the state has left a vacuum.

How can we Resolve or Prevent these conflicts?

“ The forces that unite us are intrinsic and greater than the superimposed influences that keep us apart.”

President Kwame Nkrumah

Peace shall prevail when partnerships between multilateral organizations, institutions through policy can promote peace, CSO and Government. One of the most important component is the Private sector that can play a critical role in peace building as it affects nations at all levels.

– Peace programs such as the UNESCO action in favor of a culture of peace in Africa in the context of the implementation of the “Intersectoral and Interdisciplinary Program of Action for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence” as well as in the Mid-Term Strategy (2014 -2021) of UNESCO, which has identified “building peace by building inclusive, peaceful and resilient societies” as one of two main areas of action for Africa.

– Economic and non-state features such as the ‘Kimberley Process’ [The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) imposes extensive requirements on its members to enable them to certify shipments of rough diamonds as ‘conflict-free’ and prevent conflict diamonds from entering the legitimate trade.] around ‘blood’ diamonds. A great example of partnership that is demonstrated with the UN Mandate, 54 members countries including the European Union which stands as one nation, Industries and CSO.

– Programs and initiatives that aim to contribute in the implementation of regional integration, peace, security, and democracy, and that is exemplified by the African Union’s campaign on “Silencing the Guns in Africa by 2020” that seeks to achieve a conflict-free Africa, prevent genocide, make peace a reality for all and rid the continent of wars, violent conflicts, human rights violations, and humanitarian disasters. An Initiative such as Silence of the Guns (African Union goal laid out in 2013) gives African Government leaders, CSO and the Private Sector to work towards achieving peace.

When do we work on Reconciliation and Forgiveness?

“Many discouraging hours will arise before the rainbow of accomplished goals will appear on the horizon.”

Emperor Haile Selassie

Conflicts require reconciliation which has been argued by some scholars that it is a political gimmick and a PR show rather differentiating between interpersonal and national reconciliation, or, rather, between interpersonal and institutional reconciliation, which  means that interpersonal reconciliation refers to the restoring of relationships among individuals and within communities, while institutional reconciliation involves the institutions that ensure peaceful coexistence nationwide. Forgiveness comes after reconciliation as a result of making amends with what has occurred in order for a new start to take place. For Peace to prevail, all stakeholders need to willingly cooperate rather than compete, and have to accept the past and present in order to agree on the path to a harmonious future. Peace building in Africa and around the world is an opportunity “to be involved in the decision-making process and to actively participate in decisions, which will ultimately affect them (nation of country), … They then will take ownership of these decisions and ensure that they are successfully implemented” as stated by Sam Nujoma, late President of Namibia. Reconciliation and forgiveness would need the buy-in of Government, endorsement of leaders, assistance of the network of foundations, collaboration of women or youth organizations, and alliance as well as greater participation of Civil Society Organizations (CSO) at-large.

What’s the Way Forward?

If we know that there are about 1.2 billion people that make 17% of the world’s population, and three quarters of that population is under 35 years old, and by 2050 is projected to be 2.5 billion making 26% of the world populations, Peace needs:

– In the short term, mediation and dialogue remain essential tools to getting parties to move from hostilities to agreement on a more constructive approach. We have witnessed recent peace deals that has stemmed from years of dialogue to finally signing Peace Agreement, which will transform countries’ relations and bring about regional solidarity. Regional solidarity is the greatest asset that many institutions especially Africans’ bring to peace operations on their continent. Many mediation efforts in Africa are multilateral and led by international or regional organizations, mainly the United Nations or the African Union (AU).

– While there is no easy fix to prevent and resolve violent conflict, the best long-term solution to conflict is improved governance at the national level, in the sense of effective and legitimate institutions, norms and processes for the delivery of services to the population, which means “at its core investors will buy into the belief that people in conflict zones need ownership of their own peace process.” In addition to the government, the private sector seems to gain more confidence investing in a country when there is peace and security as reported in the Institute for Economics & Peace, “Peaceful countries have effective financial markets that can better serve the needs of business. The term “finance gap” defines the unmet credit need of businesses in a country. For less peaceful countries, this gap is estimated at US$1.7 trillion”. Moreover investment only increases when there is peace and security “there is a growing need to invest in peace as “You can target high impact companies. Our framework is a good way to link investment to the SDGs and engage with clients to build more positively impactful portfolios.”

In closing, in the words of Nelson Mandela,

“Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward.”