In the aftermath of an armed conflict in Africa, the international community both produces and demands from local partners a variety of blueprints for reconstructing state and society. The aim is to re-formalize the state after what is viewed as a period of fragmentation. In reality, African economies and polities are very much informal in character, with informal actors, including so-called Big Men, often using their positions in the formal structure as a means to reach their own goals. Through a variety of in-depth case studies, including the DRC, Sierra Leone and Liberia, this comprehensive volume shows how important informal political and economic networks are in many of the continent's conflict areas. Moreover, it demonstrates that without a proper understanding of the impact of these networks, attempts to formalize African states, particularly those emerging from wars, will be in vain.

This work, along with 'The Resolution of African Conflicts', clearly demonstrates the efforts by a wide range of African scholars to explain the roots, routes, regimes and resolution of African conflicts and how to re-build post-conflict societies.

"These two volumes clearly demonstrate the efforts by a wide range of African scholars to explain the roots, routes, regimes and resolution of African conflicts and how to re-build post-conflict societies. They offer sober and serious analyses, eschewing the sensationalism of the western media and the sophistry of some of the scholars in the global North for whom African conflicts are at worst a distraction and at best a confirmation of their pet racist and petty universalist theories." --From the introduction by Paul Tiyambe Zeleza This book offers analyses of a range of African conflicts and demonstrates that peace is too important to be left to outsiders.

Master's Thesis from the year 2004 in the subject Politics - Region: Africa, grade: 1.9, University of Freiburg (University of Freiburg (Germany) and Kwazulu Natal( South Africa)), course: Sociology - Global Studies Programme, language: English, abstract: The objective of this paper was to investigate the causes of conflict in Africa and the role played by the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in ensuring political order during its period of existence. The study employed content analysis of historical documents, academic works, Internet sources and also current conflict situations in Africa as a baseline for its argument. The results showed that, despite the role of ethnicity as a source of conflicts in Africa, political and economic factors are the major sources of tension on the continent. The OAU, this paper argues, could not have a tangible impact in its attempt to ensure peace and stability on the continent, hence the functional shift in the role of Sub-regional Organisations in the continent in the area of peace and security. Notwithstanding its logistical and financial weaknesses, the Organisation failed to understand the sources of tension of most of these conflicts so as to map out a more pragmatic, multi- sectoral, and multi- dimensional approach to manage and resolve them. Factors such as the need for a more pragmatic and realistic continental policies involving good governance and genuine decentralisation were identified as crucial elements of consideration if Africa is to enjoy a sound, stable, peaceful, political and economic environment in the new millennium.

Presenting the first database of constitutional design in all African countries, and seven original case studies, Constitutions and Conflict Management in Africa explores the types of domestic political institutions that can buffer societies from destabilizing changes that otherwise increase the risk of violence.