Mitigating ethnic conflict in Africa

Solly Rakgomo | Monday July 24, 2023 06:00

Rather than accepting identity conflict as an inevitable feature of Africa’s highly diverse ethnic landscape, a number of preventative policy interventions can be pursued.

This piece shall attempt to analyse key areas that can go a long way in mitigating ethnic conflict in Africa.

At the core of ethnic conflicts is the relationship between ethnic groups and the state in the search for security, identity, and recognition. How the state negotiates these interests and needs will determine the level of identity conflicts.

A comprehensive legal system that respects minority rights, protects minorities from the abuse of state power, and ensures that their grievances are taken seriously will reduce opportunities for ethnic mobilisation. Among other things, this requires equitable access to civil service jobs and the various services the state provides. Key among these state functions is minority participation within the leadership and ranks of the security sector.

The military can be a unifying institution, creating bonds between ethnic groups, helping to forge a national identity for all ethnicities, providing youth an opportunity to travel and live throughout the nation, and allowing minorities to advance to positions of leadership through merit.

Diversity in the security sector also has tangible benefits as ethnically representative police forces are linked with lower levels of conflict in diverse societies. Elections are another flashpoint of ethnic grievances and therefore a priority for mitigating violence.

Elections present clear opportunities for politicians to play on ethnic differences. Establishing an independent, representative electoral commission led by individuals with impeccable integrity can circumscribe this ploy. Independent electoral commissions can also establish electoral rules that reward candidates for building cross-regional and intergroup coalitions—and indeed require them to do so.

Ensuring electoral jurisdictions do not coincide with ethnic boundaries is one component of such a strategy. It is also important to reinforce positive priorities for mitigating ethnic conflict in Africa reframing ethnic conflicts as political competitions for power and resources should shift how we think about mitigation strategies. Rather than accepting identity conflict as an inevitable feature of Africa’s highly diverse ethnic landscape, a number of preventative policy interventions can be pursued.

At the core of ethnic conflicts is the relationship between ethnic groups and the state in the search for security, identity, and recognition. How the state negotiates these interests and needs will determine the level of identity conflicts. A comprehensive legal system that respects minority rights, protects minorities from the abuse of State power, and ensures that their grievances are taken seriously will reduce opportunities for ethnic mobilisation. Among other things, this requires equitable access to civil service jobs and the various services the state provides. Key among these state functions is minority participation within the leadership and ranks of the security sector.

The military can be a unifying institution, creating bonds between ethnic groups, helping to forge a national identity for all ethnicities, providing youth an opportunity to travel and live throughout the nation, and allowing minorities to advance to positions of leadership through merit. Diversity in the security sector also has tangible benefits as ethnically representative police forces are linked with lower levels of conflict in diverse societies. Elections are another flashpoint of ethnic grievances—and therefore a priority for mitigating violence.

Elections present clear opportunities for politicians to play on ethnic differences. As seen in Ghana and elsewhere, the effectiveness of a competent electoral commission can make an enormous difference in averting ethnic violence. Independent electoral commissions can also establish electoral rules that reward candidates for building cross-regional and intergroup coalitions—and indeed require them to do so. Ensuring electoral jurisdictions do not coincide with ethnic boundaries is one component of such a strategy.

It is also very important to reinforce positive social norms. Over the medium to long-term, defusing the potency of ethnicity for political ends requires reorienting cultural norms. Social marketing campaigns that promote national unity, intergroup cooperation, and “strength through diversity” themes can help frame the ethnic narrative in a positive light, thereby making it more difficult for divisive politicians to play on differences to mobilise support. Such a communications strategy would be complemented by a country-wide, community-level outreach campaign implemented by civil society organisations that targets youth reinforcing messages of “one country, one people,” tolerance for other groups, and non-violent conflict resolution. Targeting the youth is particularly important for breaking intergenerational attitudes regarding ethnicity. The youth is the population group most easily mobilised to violence. A comprehensive and deliberate educational system designed to promote integration and co-existence with emphasis on civic lessons on citizenship and what it means to be a nation will foster this concept of a common people with a common destiny. A social marketing campaign also brings this unifying message directly to the people rather than relying on ethnic or political leaders (who may be benefiting from the perceived divisions). This campaign, paralleling the successful efforts of legendary Tanzanian leader Julius Nyerere, would simultaneously help build a common national identity (which so many African countries still lack) while taking the ethnicity card off the table for political actors. Complementing efforts to shift cultural and political norms surrounding identity, sanctions need to be created and applied to those actors who continue to attempt to exploit ethnic differences toward divisive ends. Two groups are critical here: the media and politicians. Penalties would take the form of a national law criminalising the incitement of ethnic differences by political actors and public officials. These laws then need to be enforced. An independent body, whether the electoral commission or a human rights, would be given responsibility for investigating charges of ethnic incitement and the authority to assess penalties including fines and bans from holding public office. The symbolism generated from a few highly publicised cases would go far towards shifting these norms. The media also plays a unique role in communicating information and impressions in society. As such, they have an indispensable function in a democracy to foster dialogue and debate. Unfortunately, in practice, it is common in Africa for certain media outlets to be controlled by politically influential individuals who are willing to whip up identity divisions to support their interests greatly elevating the potential for ethnic conflict. The media also has the potential to escalate a local conflict to the national level, raising the stakes for violence as well as complicating the task of resolution. Given the unique potential that the media has for shaping social attitudes and mass mobilisation, most societies accept that the media must meet certain standards for responsible behaviour. These standards should include prohibitions against programming that incites ethnically-based animosity. Again, independent monitoring bodies, possibly in collaboration with national media consortia, should be given the authority to quickly investigate and enact tough sanctions against outlets deemed to have violated these standards against hate mongering. These measures are one of the many ways to mitigate ethnic conflict in Africa.