Yahuza, Nurul-Haqq and Sulaiman, Kabuye Uthman and Muhammad Uthman El-Muhammady, Ahmad El-Muhammady
(2025)
An assessment of the history and causes of radicalisation in west Africa: a review.
Journal of History and Social Sciences, 4 (1).
pp. 35-58.
E-ISSN 2964-1489
Abstract
West Africa faces an extremely high terrorist threat. The dramatic increase in terrorist activity in the sub region is primarily due to two groups: Jama'at Nusrat al Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM) and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS). Although the territorial presence and activity of Al-Qaida and its affiliates (particularly Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)) was initially limited to the extreme north of Mali, it has now expanded across large areas of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. The growing strength of ISIL in West Africa has compounded the terrorist threat and contributed to the deteriorating security situation in the subregion. The current article therefore presents an assessment of the history and causes of radicalisation in West Africa based on the previous literatures. The methodology employed in this work was desk-based and library-oriented research. Desk research, also known as secondary research or library research, is a method of gathering information and insights by analyzing and synthesizing existing data and sources rather than conducting primary data collection through fieldwork or surveys. The findings indicate that it is difficult to identify a single reason that can sufficiently explain the existence of radicalisation in any particular country or region, and West Africa is no exception. However, through the findings it was concluded that factors such as political repression, widespread corruption in governance, dysfunctional governments and available large number of unemployed youth were key causes. It is suggested that ECOWAS makes great progress in issues relating to conflict management and prevention with the introduction of some protocols. For instance, Article 3 of ECOWAS Protocol relating to the mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Resolution and Security outlines fighting terrorism and radicalisation as one of its objectives
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