AN ASSESSMENT OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF UNITED NATIONS PEACE SUPPORT OPERATIONSTO AFRICAN SECURITY: CASE STUDY OF DARFUR - SUDAN

AN ASSESSMENT OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF UNITED NATIONS PEACE SUPPORT OPERATIONSTO AFRICAN SECURITY: CASE STUDY OF DARFUR - SUDAN

ABSTRACT

This study evaluates African Union -United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) from 2007-2016; with a view to determining how it has contributed to the establishment of enduring peace and security in Darfur. The study is conducted against the backdrop of the fact that most United Nations (UN) Peace Support Operations(PSO) in Africa have not adequately enhanced African security; supposedly arising from their inability to address the root causes of such conflicts and institutional inadequacies. The functionalism theory is adopted as the theoretical framework of the study. The study identified four potential outcome as assumptions. First, enduring and sustainable peace can only be achieved with the full cooperation and willingness of the parties to a conflict to end the crisis. Second, the inability of UN PSO to sufficiently improve Darfur security situation is not unconnected to their inability to address the root causes of conflicts in the region. Third, UNAMID would be more effective in Darfur if it fully collaborates with regional conflict resolution mechanisms in addressing the crisis. Fourth, the full backing of theUN Permanent Members (P5) is necessary likewise the political will of African government to promote durable peace in Darfur. Interviews were utilized as the main primary source of data. Focus Group Discussion as well as documentary evidence werealso used to supplement the data from the interviews. The data gathered were qualitatively analysed, applying logical reasoning based on facts. Findings indicate that there was no peace to keep in Darfur at the early stage as the armed movements and Government of Sudan(GoS) failed to agree to the implementation of the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) 2006 and the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur(DDPD) of 2012. This is partly due to the fact that both agreements did not factor in the root causes of the crisis bothering on the continued marginalisation of the Darfur region of Sudan by the Khartoum based government over the years. Findings indicate that only the first, second and fourth assumptions of this research are valid. Furthermore, evidence presented in this study also indicates that:there is no comprehensive political solution to the problem owing to lack of a free, fair and credible elections that would lay the foundation for meaningful representation of Darfur at the national level andthe lack of force multipliers and enablers undermined the credibility of the mission particularly during the deployment and consolidation phases.Evidence presented also indicate that relative security have being achieved in various sector Headquarters(HQs) and adjourning areas though security in the hinterland remain unstable, improvement in passage and distribution of humanitarian deliveries to people at risk and increased awareness on issues of human rights and rule of law in Darfur. The thesis recommends the generation of niche and specialized capability for UNAMID components, and the development of a clear political strategy towards a comprehensive political solution.

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