Publication

This paper examines border conflict in Africa as a source of conflict and discusses future threats to peace and security on the continent. It argues that although border-related inter-state conflicts have been displaced by governance-related intra-state conflict, Africa’s poorly demarcated boundaries are still potent sources of conflict, particularly as far as the spilling over of intra-state conflicts to neighboring countries is concerned. Despite the artificial and unviable character of the borders of many African states, the continent’s governing elite has over the years stuck to a policy of maintaining the status quo of the continent’s internationally recognized borders.