AMISOM and African-Centred Solutions to Peace and Security Challenges

Abstract

The success of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) seems to vindicate
emerging scholarly and policy optimism regarding Africa’s potential to solve its
peace and security problems through Africa-centred responses. To explain this
African-led intervention’s success–despite Africa’s apparent institutional and
resource limitations and in the context of the 1992-93 US-led Operation Restore
Hope’s failures–this desk-based inquiry underlines the commitment, shared values,
and ownership that typify AMISOM. I advance an “African-Centred Solutions”
(AfSol) perspective that is rooted in Afro-optimist analyses which, basing on
Africa’s past dealings with foreign actors, argues that “borrowed fists” cannot
solve [most of] Africa’s security problems. Evidently, unlike non-Africa-centred
interventions, AMISOM relied on the AfSol approach whose pillars–genuine
commitment, shared Pan-African values, and a sense of ownership–engendered
its success by incentivising states to withstand the Mission’s costs and to tirelessly
mobilise foreign support. Throughout, Africans incorporated and reflected AfSol
principles, by: initiating the Mission-building upon IGAD’s efforts; persisting
amidst the Mission’s human, resource, and politico-security costs; involving both
local and foreign Somalis; and integrating disparate intervention programmes
into a single, AU-sanctioned Mission. AMISOM’s success underscores the need to
harness Africa’s potential to address its peace and security challenges.