Tadesse, C: Regional Security in West Africa

Since the 1990s, ECOWAS has stepped into previously uncharted waters of peacekeeping and peace enforcement in intra-state civil wars in its back yard by violating the sacrosanct principles of sovereignty and non-intervention in domestic affairs of states. To this end, it has established a robust security structure and adopted norms and procedures. Thus, ECOWAS‘ security architecture has become an alternative to traditional UN-led peacekeeping missions. And yet this pioneering experiment has faced theoretical and empirical challenges. The aim of this book is to invigorate the current discussion on the relevance of ECOWAS‘ security framework in conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peace enforcement. By invoking Buzan‘s concept of ‘security complex‘, the book analyzes inter-state security interaction, amity and enmity among states, role of non-state actors and regionalization of conflicts in the sub-region. The analysis also sheds light on the challenges of ECOWAS‘ security mechanism. This book is useful to academicians, state and non-state security actors, donors, or anyone who may be interested in security and regional integration in West Africa and the rest of the continent.