Abstract:
This paper investigates Africa's potential to bring relative peace in the wake of human insecurity from 1999 up to 2017. While empirical studies of causes and effects may have been done case by case, a study for the prospects of relative peace for the entire continent in this period has not been done. This study analyses patterns of conflicts, aggression and terrorism activities in Africa with a view to ascertaining remedies and prospects for the continent that can be embraced by regional economic communities. Results reveal that, while the number of deaths due to conflicts has been progressively dwindling, daily life is still dominated by human insecurity in different forms for the majority of people. There has been a noticeable swing away from despotic forms of governance towards democratic governance and respect for basic human rights. This evolution has not been linear with political systems not quite stable. African governments still have problems of effectively administering their States or preventing terrorist groups from spreading their presence and challenging State authority and legitimacy thereof. But the problems are not insurmountable.
Keywords:
Africa, conflict, peace, regional economic communities