Globalization at the Micro Level: Mason’s Africa Working Group
BY VANDY KANYAKO JR.
The Africa Working Group (AWG) at the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR) is an association of academic practitioners, activists, and students interested in fostering an in-depth understanding of contemporary Africa’s position in the global community. The working group was founded in the early 1990s by ICAR students and faculty as a forum through which various Africa-focused constituencies can meet, share ideas and undertake joint projects that connect—both virtually and physically— disparate constituencies in Africa and the outside world. To this end, the AWG has utilized advocacy, activism, research and timely seminars to engage the Washington metropolitan community in African affairs. Its highly interactive forums challenge participants to identify approaches for mitigating conflict and promoting peace, justice and sustainable development in one of the world’s most volatile continents.
By striving to build bridges and promote collaboration between Africa-based governmental and non-governmental actors and their international counterparts, the Africa Working Group is both a by-product of globalization as well as its willing agent. The AWG links distinct constituencies including US-based African students and their peers, activists, practitioners, and researchers in North America and Africa. The linkages facilitate the flow of information and deepen partnerships both within Africa and between Africa and the international community. For a continent that has undergone momentous transitions in the last fifteen years, this exchange of knowledge and ideas— the hallmarks of globalization— is critical to promoting a grounded understanding of Africa’s relationship with the international community.
AFRICA AND GLOBALIZATION: PARADOX OF HOPE AND DESPAIR
Globalization, taken here to mean the integration of worldwide economies through trade, financial flows, the exchange of technology and information, and the movement of people, has presented a double-edged sword for Africa. On one hand (as is vividly illustrated in Somalia and Darfur) Africa’s political and socioeconomic woes are both local and international as they carry wide-ranging implications for stability, national reconciliation and development not only in the affected regions but elsewhere on the continent and beyond. One such example is the proliferation of small arms and light weapons and the phenomenon of foreign fighters which has been driven by globalization.
Conversely, Africa has also benefited immensely from globalization. The continent has recorded some noteworthy successes in the areas of conflict management, economic development, justice and accountability, to name a few. In conflict management, compared to the 1990s, Africa has grown more peaceful. The violent conflicts in Angola, Sierra Leone, and Liberia are over, while the fragile situations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Cote d’Ivoire have been largely contained. The positive forces of globalization, including rigorous diplomatic, military and grassroots initiatives, have coalesced to extinguish some of Africa’s flames.
There is also good news on the economic front. According to a 2005 World Bank Report, the continent’s economy grew by an estimated 3.8 percent with virtually all countries reporting positive growth. Economic growth in Africa, according to this widely quoted report, picked up in 2004 to 4.1 percent as the benefits from past reforms and a more peaceful environment played out in expanded economic activity. Whilst these figures may seemingly represent a drop in the ocean in comparison with more prosperous regions, it is indeed worth reporting for a continent that has witnessed a reversal of economic fortunes for over three successive decades.
Progress can also be seen in the area of justice and accountability. The International Criminal Court (ICC) was established in 2003 following negotiations sponsored by the United Nations. The ICC issued its first indictments in 2005 when it charged five top Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) commanders with crimes against humanity. In 2006, Charles Taylor of Liberia became the first African head of state to be indicted on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity as a result of his role in both the Liberian and Sierra Leone civil wars. Taylor is now in the Hague awaiting trial.
Despite such notable progress, major challenges still abound in Africa. The continent is home to 30% of the world’s poor, and is the only region in the world where poverty is increasing in stark contrast to dramatic gains in other regions. This is a major cause for concern as poverty makes violence an attractive career option, especially for the continent’s bourgeoning youth population. The virulent spread of HIV/AIDS, the despicable atrocities in Darfur and until recently, northern Uganda; the chaos of Zimbabwe and the ethnic, religious, and now oil clashes in Nigeria; and the perennial instability in Somalia, are all examples of the steep challenge the continent faces in attaining sustainable peace.
MASON’S CONTRIBUTIONS TO GLOBAL DIALOGUE ON AFRICA
The Africa Working Group organizes events including Africathemed cultural events, book launches, and conferences featuring prominent speakers in order to promote dialogue aimed at explaining and understanding Africa’s paradox of hope and setback. The AWG provides a forum through which representatives of civil society and government can converge to explore the continent’s myriad of problems, debate its nuances and complexities, and offer practical ways of addressing issues through the development of effective and sustainable partnerships.
Some notable events organized by the AWG aimed at initiating discussions amongst various constituencies include: the African Peacemakers Encounter, which brought together students and peace activists representing nine African countries from Mason, Duquesne and Eastern Mennonite Universities; a conference marking the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide; a Darfur symposium; and a book reading with Rwandan author Louise Mushikiwabo.
In 2007, the AWG will convene a conference focused on the changing face of peacekeeping in Africa. Participants will cally explore how to better integrate peacekeeping mandates and peacebuilding initiatives to ensure a continuum that promotes sustainable peace, justice and development. The ultimate goal will be to put forward practical recommendations for addressing some of the key weakness in peacekeeping in Africa in particular, and how these lessons can be applied to other global hotspots.
The Africa Working Group contributes to the accumulation and dissemination of knowledge and ideas through the planning and hosting of timely events that bring together representatives of non-governmental organizations, academia, and the policy arena. Such diffusion of knowledge is critical to harnessing the positive impact of globalization on the continent. It is with this in mind that the AWG seizes every opportunity to build bridges between Africa-based and international agents in the conflict management and development arena.
There is no doubt that globalization will continue to reinforce the interdependencies between different countries and regions. The key challenge for the Africa Working Group, and indeed for all individuals and institutions genuinely concerned with Africa’s rightful place on the global platform, is developing mechanisms that deepen enduring and mutually beneficial partnerships both within and outside the continent. Such a mechanism should have as its ultimate goal the establishment of partnerships that maximize the potential benefits from globalization whilst minimizing the downside risks of destabilization and marginalization.
Good governance, justice, peace, stability and sustainabledevelopment can all be enhanced as Africa presses home its comparative advantage in the face of the exerting forces of globalization. These goals are too large and complex to be attained through countries’ singular efforts—Africa’s challenges require a concerted effort involving large and small, local and international, governmental as well as non-governmental actors committed to promoting knowledge and engaging debates among disparate constituencies both inside and beyond the African continent. The Africa Working Group sees itself as a small but critical part of the larger mix that sets out to define Africa’s relation with the rest of the world.
Vandy Kanyako Jr. (vkanyako@gmu.edu) is a doctoral student at the Institute for Conflict Analysis & Resolution (http://icar.gmu.edu) and co-president of the Africa Working Group. He hails from Sierra Leone, where he worked on the reintegration of ex-child combatants. Citations have been removed due to space limitations, but are available from the author.
