Rising Powers and the African Security Landscape

Abstract

The last decade has witnessed a major economic expansion of China, India, Brazil and South Africa in Africa. This has mainly been driven by commercial and corporate interests, but the political profile of these rising powers has also become much more visible. They are becoming more sensitive to insecurity and volatility and gradually getting more involved in the African peace and security agenda. The four articles in this report analyses the role of the rising powers in relation to the evolving African peace and security architecture. The Asian and Latin American countries, which traditionally have strongly emphasised non-intervention, are gradually becoming more involved in the African security landscape. They are increasingly concerned about their image and reputation and the security of their citizens and business interests, and are becoming more prepared to act multilaterally and to work with others in facilitating security and stability. As an African power, South Africa plays a more direct role and has emerged as a major architect of the continent’s evolving peace and security architecture. The four rising powers are faced with a number of challenges identified in these articles. The desire to play a larger role in security politics often clashes with the complexities of doing so while preserving foreign policy principles and economic interests. This report is published by CMI in cooperation with the The Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre (NOREF).