ACPST course: Governance and human security in Africa 2014

This course focused on the following 4 key dimensions of governance: leadership and management, human rights, the rule of law and democracy

Date: 2014-01-13 to 2014-01-24

Time: 08:30 to 17:30

Venue: ACPST ISS Addis Ababa

Governance occupies a central role in discussions of threats to human security and the possibilities for overcoming these threats. To respond to this, the course focused on the following five key dimensions of governance: leadership and management, human rights, the rule of law, democracy and sensitivity to marginalised communities. It used these dimensions to explore how governance is related to the following threats: 1) electoral conflict, 2) civil conflict, 3) human trafficking, 4) drug trafficking, 5) and climate change.

The course explored the following questions: What exactly does good governance in the dimensions highlighted above mean? In what way is ‘poor’ governance related to the threats listed above? How can ‘good’ governance help to address these threats to human security? Why are some African countries and societies making more progress than others towards governance that effectively tackles these human security threats? What are the specific and practical means and skills with which we can craft and practise ‘good governance’ in dealing with human security threats?

The course brought together 28 participants from 20 countries, with a mixture of state and non-state actors, including those from the Africa Union (AU), United Nations (UN), not-for-profit sectors, military and police officers as well as national security officers working on governance and human security issues in Africa.

Over the two weeks of the course, participants were equipped with the latest practical skills for crafting, promoting and practising good governance in dealing with human security threats. The course assisted the participants to positively influence policy making and implementation by giving them a better understanding of governance and its impact on human security. It also helped participants to build networks that will enable them to exchange knowledge and information on cutting-edge ways of improving governance, especially in relation to threats to human security.