Workshop:

Of all the continents, Africa is one of the most torn by conflict. These conflicts always have two dimensions: internal civil war and foreign intervention. Minerals and other natural resources, far from being a source of prosperity for Africa, directly or indirectly fuel most conflicts. Competition for land, aggravated by population growth, the greed of foreign powers and the soil’s loss of fertility, is the underlying cause of most conflicts labelled as ethnic or inter-community disputes. Because States lack legitimacy, they are virtually incapable of preventing the irruption of violence, and are in fact often its cause. The international community developed an entire philosophy for rebuilding the State after its failure, but the methods used and the short length of time they were implemented did not allow it to succeed. And despite the praiseworthy efforts of the African Union, few conflicts have been resolved without the intervention of the ‘international community’.

Yet Africa, with traditions going back thousands of years, has its own conflict-resolution and peacemaking instruments which are worth examining in the light of international experience and using to develop a new doctrine. The conference will devote itself to encouraging dialogue between the various institutional and social actors, leading them to think about their practices, pool experiences and come up with new alternatives for conflict prevention and management.