Following polemic foreign interventions and private military deployments, one state in Africa provides a seemingly novel and effective solution to the lack of military capacity faced by many in the...Show moreFollowing polemic foreign interventions and private military deployments, one state in Africa provides a seemingly novel and effective solution to the lack of military capacity faced by many in the Central and Eastern African region. Mitigating non-state armed actors, protecting international assets while maintaining strict guiding institutions within the force, the Rwandan Defence Force seems to have reshaped both itself, and the nature of African bilateral security arrangements. In a context where mineral and energy extraction often precludes civilian wellbeing and contributions, this paper aims to integrate a security studies reform (SSR) perspective into its research. This research aims to reveal “How has Rwandan security assistance reshaped regional security for civilians in Eastern and Central Africa from 1993?”, through a comprehensive literature review on historical and contemporary African security paradigms, and a qualitatively researched congruence analysis framework. Underlining the pre-existent structure of African military apparatus and the threats that they have been built to address allows us to conceptualise the state that regional security embodied. By thoroughly exploring the nascent and modern application of Rwandan assistance, we may begin to remodel not only the post-genocide Rwandan military, but the very mettle of African security dynamics. Understanding the Realist, Liberal and Constructivist tendencies of Rwandan security assistance to both local and global actors remains crucial in mitigating potential conflicts of interest, while ensuring an equitable outcome for human security.Show less
Since 2011, Libya has been afflicted by two civil wars, political unrest, divided governance, and closely related economic instability. These conditions have left officials with low operational...Show moreSince 2011, Libya has been afflicted by two civil wars, political unrest, divided governance, and closely related economic instability. These conditions have left officials with low operational capacity, making the country an attractive transit and departure state for migrants from all over the African continent traveling along the Central Mediterranean Immigration Route (CMIR) with the goal of reaching European soil. Today the CMIR is among the deadliest migration routes globally and has seen hundreds of thousands of migrants risking their lives to arrive at European coasts and seek asylum, while thousands more have perished and suffered extreme abuses in Libya during their journey. In response, the EU has attempted to manage migratory flows and address the root causes of irregular migration through externalized border control policies which entail financing local Libyan forces. However, these strategies have sparked concerns due to ensuing humanitarian crises. The EU’s collaboration with warlords and actors with poor human rights records undermines its commitment to international human rights, exposing migrants to exploitation and abuse by corrupt officials and criminal networks. Evidence of such abuses is prevalent in detention centers and under the Libyan Coastal Guard, which receives logistic and financial support from the EU in efforts to curb migrant departures from Libya. These externalization policies, seen as cost-effective, prioritize short-term solutions over establishing robust asylum processes, ultimately causing human suffering. This thesis contextualizes these policies and details the specific funds and initiatives enacted by the EU, analyzing quantitative data and critical reports on these strategies in order to assess their impact on the migration flow of the CMIR. It concludes by highlighting the numerous shortcomings of this approach and the necessity for a more transparent and sustainable approach to safeguard the rights and lives of migrants along the CMIR.Show less
