This essay addresses the question in how far regional institutions provide security. It will be analysed whether states use regional institutions as a tool to pursuit their national self-interest or whether regional organisations have an influence on a country's perception on security matters and help to create a security community.
The Cold War period had a dual effect on regional conflicts. Conflicts that would otherwise have been local were subsumed within the superpower competition of the US-led (capitalist) Western and Soviet-led (communist) Eastern bloc. Fearing the other power might gain political influence such as in Africa, each superpower was driven to assist one or the other party of a conflict. Since the beginning of decolonization which began after the Second World War, the regional level of security became more autonomous and prominent in the developing world and the end of the Cold War accelerated this process. Both the remaining superpower (United States) and the other great powers had less incentive and were less inclined to intervene in security affairs outside their own regions. For these reasons, regional institutions have become more involved in the maintenance of peace and security in different parts of the world, e.g. the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The emergence of regional organisations has brought about contrasting views on their effectiveness as providers for security. Whereas skeptics claim that member states use regional institutions to follow their national self-interest instead of pursuing collective security, advocates argue that regional organisations are important components of any lasting peace.
At a glance
- Grade: 1.0 (1.0 is the best grade)
- Compares realism, new institutionalism and constructivism using sub-Saharan African cases
- Examines the Democratic Republic of Congo intervention by SADC members
- 15 sources in the bibliography
Table of Contents
No table of contents is provided in the document.
Objectives and Themes
This essay examines how regional institutions contribute to security in sub-Saharan Africa, asking whether states use them to pursue national interests, share security responsibilities, or develop new understandings of security through cooperation.
- Regional institutions and collective security
- Security challenges in sub-Saharan Africa
- Realist, institutionalist and constructivist perspectives
- The Southern African Development Community and the Democratic Republic of Congo
- Cooperation between African institutions and the United Nations
Excerpt from the Book
Regional Institutions as providers of security
As outlined by David J. Francis, security is a contested concept in terms of definition, interpretation and specification. While the traditional concept of security dealt with military dimensions regarding territory expansion and protection, the security agenda has broadened in recent years. As in the case of sub-Saharan Africa, individual and societal security is being endangered by environmental degradation, poverty, resource scarcity, ethno-religious and nationalist identities as well as crime and diseases. Due to shortage of space, this essay will not focus on the kinds of security operations multilateral institutions in Africa are able to provide, e.g. peacekeeping and/or peace enforcement operations. The focus will be as to how and for what reasons these institutions have dealt with security matters.
The formation of the United Nations (hereafter UN) in 1945 represented a turning point in the status of regional organisations in international law. Article 52 of Chapter VIII of the UN Charter recognises the importance of ‘regional arrangements or agencies’ for settling local disputes before bringing them to the UN Security Council. While these organisations take on important economic roles, they are now reinventing themselves to incorporate collective security into their agendas. This is in recognition of the fact that without political stability there is no economic propensity. There is no generally accepted definition of what constitutes regional institutions. Jane Boulden defines them as “a multistate geographically synchronous institutional entity”, while Nye describes regional institutions as consisting of membership that is restricted in principal and in practice on the basis of geographical contiguity.
UN peacekeeping operations in Africa have largely failed as in Rwanda in 1994 and in Somalia in 1998. Furthermore, during the second half of the 1990s, the frequency with which the UN entered into new operations diminished drastically. In the case of Africa, the continent’s explosive and rapidly erupting conflicts support the argument for the necessity of regional institutions to provide security. It is argued that regional organisations are able to react quicker to conflicts due to their geographical proximity. Furthermore, they can bring strong background knowledge and existing personal and professional contacts which permits an ease of access and an ability to exert pressure that may not be available to non-regional interveners. They tend to be more committed to conflicts close to their countries due to the danger of spillovers and their involvement may seem less intrusive. In sum, it has been argued that involving regional organizations in conflict management provides an opportunity for local actors to have greater input into the conflict management process, e.g. African solutions for African problems. The extent to which regional institutions are better suited than the UN to respond adequately to the security of many developing countries remains a matter of continuing theoretical and empirical interest.
Section Summaries
Regional Institutions as providers of security: The essay introduces an expanded understanding of security and discusses the legal status and potential advantages of regional organisations in conflict management.
Sub-Saharan Africa as a security region: This section considers state weakness, sovereignty and differences among African states, introducing the Southern African Development Community as the essay’s principal regional focus.
Examination of theories: The author compares realism, new institutionalism and constructivism through African security cooperation, including the intervention in the Democratic Republic of Congo and developments within SADC and the African Union.
Conclusion: The essay brings together the three theoretical perspectives and discusses the challenges of regional security provision and cooperation with the United Nations.
Keywords
regional institutions, collective security, sub-Saharan Africa, SADC, African Union, United Nations, realism, new institutionalism, constructivism, security communities, sovereignty, Democratic Republic of Congo
Frequently Asked Questions
What is this essay about?
It examines the role of regional institutions in providing security in sub-Saharan Africa.
What are its central themes?
Its themes include collective security, state interests, regional cooperation, sovereignty and changing security norms.
What is the main research question?
The essay asks how regional institutions provide security and whether they primarily serve state interests, facilitate cooperation or change states’ perceptions of security.
What method does the author use?
The essay uses a comparative theoretical discussion, relating realism, new institutionalism and constructivism to cases and developments in sub-Saharan Africa.
What does the main body cover?
It defines regional institutions and security, considers the African regional context, and examines competing theoretical explanations through examples of security cooperation and intervention.
Which keywords characterize the work?
Key terms include regional institutions, collective security, SADC, realism, new institutionalism, constructivism and security communities.
Why is SADC important to the discussion?
The Southern African Development Community is the essay’s principal regional focus and provides examples of cooperation, institutional development and intervention.
How does the essay use the Democratic Republic of Congo case?
It discusses the intervention by SADC members as a case for examining national interests and collective security.
What role does the United Nations play in the analysis?
The essay considers the UN Charter’s recognition of regional arrangements and discusses cooperation between the UN and African regional institutions in peacekeeping.
- Quote paper
- Maren Ihlau (Author), 2009, How can we best account for the role of regional institutions in providing security?, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/160415
