A review of Mali’s counterterrorism approach in the light of African Union interventions

ABSTRACT

Terrorism is pervasive in Mali. The efforts by Mali to counter terrorism, however, have been inadequate. The lack of institutional capacity and the lack of a workable counterterrorism policy characterised by bad governance are identified as key inadequacies in the fight against terrorism in Mali. In view of these inadequacies, the article demonstrates the need for a continental approach to fight the threat of terrorism in Mali. But for the African Union (AU) to be effective in resolving the Malian impasse, its diplomatic, political, and military approaches have been discussed and critiqued. The article suggests the need to retool the security architecture of the AU – the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) – and particularly, to ensure the full operationalisation of the Common African Defence and Security Policy (CADSP) and the African Standby Force (ASF). Importantly, the AU must also have a counterterrorism fund dedicated to support the fight against terrorism in Mali and Africa as a whole.

KEYWORDS:

• Counterterrorism
• terrorism
• Mali
• African union
• Economic community of west African states

Acknowledgements

I am most grateful to the Lord God Almighty (YHWH) for His Grace and Mercies thus far. My profound thanks also go to my mentor, David Mickler, the Dean Global, Africa and Associate Professor of International Relations at Curtin University. He was also the founder and director of the Africa Research & Engagement Centre (AfREC) at The University of Western Australia. I am equally grateful to The University of Western Australia for the award of the Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship during my doctorate programme.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

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Isaac Mensah

Isaac Mensah holds a Doctorate degree in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Western Australia (UWA). He is a former Fellow at the Africa Research and Engagement Centre (AfREC) at UWA, Australia. He has published widely including: “The African Union’s Policy Frameworks, Institutional Mechanisms and Challenges in Countering Terrorism in Africa”; “A critique of State Level Implementation of African Union Counterterrorism Instruments”; “Small-scale Mining, the SDGs and Human Insecurity in Ghana”; “Border Control and Movement of Terrorist Groups in West Africa”; “Assessing Accountability in Ghana’s District Assemblies”; and “The New Partnership of Africa’s Development and Resource Mobilisation (book)”, among others. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree (Hons) in Political Science, and a Master’s degree in International Affairs from the University of Ghana, Legon in Ghana. Prior to enrolling as a PhD candidate at UWA, he obtained his second Master’s degree in Political Science – Democratic Governance and Civil Society – from the University of Osnabrück in Germany.