Last week’s Munich Security Conference clearly signalled that Africa needs security alliances beyond its traditional partners. The peripheralisation of Africa was again evident at last week’s Munich Security Conference – the world’s premier forum on global security issues. Conflicts dominating world news, such as Ukraine, Venezuela, the Indo-Pacific, and Greenland, monopolised the debate. Africa struggled…
Washington, DC — The Africa Bureau at the State Department has a new top official, Nick Checker. Unlike his recent predecessors who were career diplomats, he has been at State for only four months, having served for the previous decade as a military analyst at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He spent part of last…
Adopted by the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) at its 1314th meeting held on 21 November 2025, which was dedicated to an Open Session on Children Affected by Armed Conflicts. The Peace and Security Council, Recalling Decision [Assembly/AU/Dec.753(XXXIII)] adopted by the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union…
In a landmark move aimed at preventing future water-related conflicts and strengthening regional integration, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Mano River Union (MRU) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on Tuesday sealed a historic agreement to jointly manage shared river basins across the Mano River sub-region. The agreement…
The persistence of Africa’s conflicts has directly contributed to a record 167 million Africans facing acute food insecurity with an estimated 700,000 threatened by famine. Highlights An estimated 167 million Africans faced acute food insecurity in 2025–a record high. This represents the sixth consecutive annual increase in the number of Africans experiencing acute food crises….
United Nations — The revenues from arms sales and military services by the 100 largest arms-producing companies rose by 5.9 per cent in 2024, reaching a record $679 billion, according to new data released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). www.sipri.org Global arms revenues rose sharply in 2024, as demand was boosted by…
The African continent has, since its demarcation, grappled with a wave of coups and insurgencies, with several regions struggling to combat the emergence of Islamic terrorist groups. For decades, countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, and Burundi have endured the presence of rebel groups a reality that continues to hinder their economic…
New York – The world is experiencing the highest number of active conflicts since 1946, creating unprecedented risks and suffering for women and girls. The 2025 UN Secretary-General’s report on Women, Peace and Security warns that 676 million women now live within 50 kilometers of deadly conflict, the highest level since the 1990s. Civilian casualties among women and…
The president of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) warned Tuesday that the free and peaceful world envisioned when the U.N. was founded 80 years ago remains far from reality, citing colonial-era legacies, wars and widening human rights violations. Speaking at the 80th anniversary commemoration and opening of the General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock said “colonialism…
As Africa’s conflicts become more regionalized, forcibly displaced populations increasingly face the predicament of fleeing into neighboring countries also experiencing conflict. Highlights An estimated 45.7 million Africans are forcibly displaced–refugees, internally displaced, or asylum seekers–comprising 4 percent of the total population. This continues a pattern of 15 years of steadily increasing numbers of forcibly displaced…
