Kohnert, Dirk (2023): ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger?
This is the latest version of this item.
Preview |
PDF
Kohnert-2023.ECOWAS-paper-tiger.UPDATED.pdf Download (1MB) | Preview |
Abstract
Economic integration among West African member states was the original mandate of ECOWAS. Threats to development, peace and security led the community to expand its mandate to include conflict management. ECOWAS has established a commendable record in peacekeeping. Its intervention in Liberia ended the conflict. In Sierra Leone, it provided the necessary support to the legitimate government, but in Guinea Bissau, it failed to stop the violence. In 2004, ECOMOG was replaced by the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF), made up of military, police and civilian personnel. As part of its missions, ECOWAS has implemented conflict prevention and resolution mechanisms outlined in its Conflict Prevention Framework (ECPF). However, the organisation relies on its member states to achieve its objectives. Unfortunately, the latter is mostly characterised by a lack of political and financial commitment. In recent years, ECOWAS has focused on counter-terrorism strategies. However, these too have been hampered by capacity constraints, the persistence of a socioeconomic environment increasingly conducive to religious fundamentalism and extremism, and varying levels of political will and commitment. The ECOWAS institution's conflict prevention tools are currently stronger than its conflict management tools. At present, the ESF lacks the logistical and financial capacity for military deployment. Nigeria, the main troop and financial contributor, was supposed to provide more than half of the pledged ESF troops. But it has internal security challenges of its own. It is therefore doubtful that it could spare its pledged troops for an ESF mission. All this suggests that ECOWAS, once a force to be reckoned with in West Africa, has been reduced to a paper tiger. It's warning to intervene, by military force if necessary, in the current conflict in Niger, where a coup has overthrown the legitimate government, was reckoned as an empty threat. Especially since the coup leaders in Mali, Niger and Guinea have been backed by Russia.
Item Type: | MPRA Paper |
---|---|
Original Title: | ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger? |
English Title: | ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger? |
Language: | English |
Keywords: | ECOWAS; ECOWAS Standby Force; coup d'état; governance; sustainable development; post-colonialism; informal sector; ODA; Sub-Saharan Africa; West Africa; Mali; Niger; Guinea; Nigeria; France; African Union; EU; African Studies; |
Subjects: | F - International Economics > F1 - Trade > F15 - Economic Integration F - International Economics > F3 - International Finance > F35 - Foreign Aid F - International Economics > F5 - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy > F51 - International Conflicts ; Negotiations ; Sanctions F - International Economics > F5 - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy > F52 - National Security ; Economic Nationalism F - International Economics > F5 - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy > F54 - Colonialism ; Imperialism ; Postcolonialism H - Public Economics > H1 - Structure and Scope of Government > H12 - Crisis Management H - Public Economics > H5 - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies > H56 - National Security and War K - Law and Economics > K4 - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior > K42 - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law N - Economic History > N4 - Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation > N47 - Africa ; Oceania Z - Other Special Topics > Z1 - Cultural Economics ; Economic Sociology ; Economic Anthropology > Z13 - Economic Sociology ; Economic Anthropology ; Social and Economic Stratification |
Item ID: | 118241 |
Depositing User: | Dr. Dirk Kohnert |
Date Deposited: | 09 Aug 2023 13:35 |
Last Modified: | 09 Aug 2023 13:35 |
References: | AFP & arabnews (2023): A Niamey, les coupures d'électricité s'aggravent sous l'effet des sanctions. @arabnews, 7 August 2023 AFP & Le Monde (2023): ECOWAS says military intervention in Niger is not off the table. Paris: Le Monde, 2 August 2023 Al Jazeera (2023): Timeline: A history of ECOWAS military interventions in three decades. 2 August 2023 Aning, Emmanuel Kwesi (1999): From ‘eco-pessimism’ to ‘eco-optimism’: ECOMOG and The West African Integration Process. African Journal of Political Science, vol. 4 (1), pp. 21-39 Anonymous (1993): Liberia - Waging war to keep the peace: The ECOMOG intervention and human rights. Human Rights Watch Report, Liberian Studies Journal, vol. 5 (6), pp. 278-318 Birdbyrde (2023): War in Ukraine: Is Africa the new frontier? Foreign Affairs – Nairaland, blog, Birdbyrde440, 31 July 2023 Birikorang, Emma (2013): Lessons learned and best practice from a troubled region: ECOWAS and the development of the ECOWAS Standby Force. In: João Gomes Porto & Ulf Engel (eds.): Towards an African Peace and Security Regime. London: Routledge, Chapter 5, pp. 89-110 Bobin, Frédéric (2016): Au Niger, l’incertitude politique pèse sur la stratégie migratoire de l’Europe. Le Monde, 8 August 2023 Borutta, Julia & Georg Schwarte (2023): Was der Putsch in Niger für den Westen bedeutet. Deutschlandfunk, 2 August 2023 Chrisafis, Angelique & Oliver Holmes (2023): Niger coup leaders accuse France of plotting military intervention. London: The Guardian, 31 Jul 2023 EJOLT (2015): Areva's Uranium mines Ines in Agadez, Niger. EJOLT Fact sheet, No. 030 Finkenzeller, Karin & Thomas Stölzel (2023): The new rulers in Niger announced that they would immediately stop all uranium exports to France, Wirtschaftswoche, 5 August 2023 Haacke, Jürgen & Paul D. Williams (2008): Conclusions: security culture and transnational challenges – ECOWAS in comparative perspective. Journal of Contemporary African Studies, vol. 26 (2), pp. 213-222 Kohnert, Dirk (2023): On the impact of the 2023 Sudanese war on Africa and beyond. MPRA WP 117581 Kohnert, Dirk (2022): The impact of Russian presence in Africa. MPRA paper, No. 112564 Kohnert, Dirk (2022a): Russia and the rise of Islamic terrorism in Sub-Saharan Africa. SSRN No. 4122565 Kohnert, Dirk (2022b): French domination of markets in Francophone Africa: Post-colonialism at its finest? MPRA_paper_112024, SSRN WP 4037625 Le Cam, Morgane (2023): Coup d’Etat au Niger : la Communauté des Etats de l’Afrique de l’Ouest hausse le ton et joue son avenir. Le Monde, 1 August 2023 Lepidi, Pierre (2023): 'Bola Tinubu's credibility will depend on what he can do in Niger'. Le Monde, 3 September 2023 Nadieline, Lucien (2016): Le rôle de la CEDEAO dans la résolution des conflits en Afrique de l'Ouest. Centre de ressources virtuel des Rivières du Sud, M.A. thesis, 174 p. Omer, Nimo (2023): The global fallout from Niger’s coup. London: The Guardian, 1 Aug 2023 Onstad, Eric (31 July 2023). Niger is among the world's biggest uranium producers. Reuters. Retrieved 5 August 2023 Rashid, Ismail (2013): The Sierra Leone civil war and the remaking of ECOWAS. Research in Sierra Leone Studies, vol. 1 (1), pp. 1-21 Tavares, Rodrigo (2011): The participation of SADC and ECOWAS in military operations: The weight of national interests in decision-making. African Studies Review, vol. 54 (2), pp. 145-176 Tejpar, Johan & Adriana Lins de Albuquerque (2015): Challenges to peace and security in West Africa: The role of ECOWAS. Ministry of Defence, Swedish Defence Research Agency, pp. 1-4 Vhumbunu, C.H. (2023): Assessing the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS) Counterterrorism Strategy. In: George Klay Kieh Jr. & Kelechi A. Kalu (eds.): Insurgency, Terrorism, and Counterterrorism in Africa, pp. 163-186 Wittenbrink, Franca (2023): Zeit, Zähne zu zeigen? Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (faz), 3 September 2023 Yabi, Gilles Olakounlé (2010): The role of ECOWAS in managing political crisis and conflict. The Cases of Guinea and Guinea-Bissau. FES Peace and Security Series, Abuja, 2010 |
URI: | https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/id/eprint/118241 |
Available Versions of this Item
-
ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger? (deposited 09 Aug 2023 13:22)
- ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger? (deposited 09 Aug 2023 13:36)
- ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger? (deposited 09 Aug 2023 13:36)
- ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger? (deposited 09 Aug 2023 13:35) [Currently Displayed]
- ECOWAS, once an assertive power in West Africa, reduced to a paper tiger? (deposited 09 Aug 2023 13:29)