Volume 12 Number 3

There is no easy answer to the challenges facing African populations. The problems, often described as far-reaching, need to be met with solutions that are equally far-reaching. The defence sector has much to contribute to the new solutions to Africa’s problems, and is certain to be a major player in the pursuit of more stable and democratic forms of government in Africa. The planning of what to do and measuring how much has been done must be undertaken as a matter of the first importance.

As parliaments, municipalities, broadcasters and businesses are subjected to new, higher standards of governance, so too must military planners, defence contractors and operational headquarters. The soldiers and weapons that have helped to fuel the fires of violence will be essential when enhancing the peace and security envisioned by the African Union and Nepad.

The defence sector includes military forces, defence departments and ministries; and also the legislature, the executive, other national departments to the extent that they interact with defence, sub-regional, regional and international defence and security organisations, para-military forces and civil society organisations involved in the defence debate. To ensure positive change aligned with the democratisation of sub-Saharan Africa, it is essential that the defence sector in this region also be fundamentally transformed.

Transformation of the defence sector should address three fundamental issues: the establishment of a collaborative defence community; the inculcation of democratic civil-military relations and the provision of efficient defence management.

First, a collaborative defence approach leads to more confidence among parties and to security within the sub-region and region. This, in turn, contributes to conflict prevention within national units and on a regional scale.

Second, democratic civil–military relations also build confidence by espousing transparency, accountability and civilian control of the defence management process. Furthermore, good civil–military relations enhance the ability of governments to strike a balance between developmental and security needs.

Third, efficiency in defence management ensures that defence activities are aligned with other government policies and priorities. Efficient defence expenditure, when maintained at levels that are absolutely essential to ensure effective defence, may release scarce resources needed for social and economic development.

In recognition of the fundamental importance of these issues, the Institute for Security Studies recently launched a ‘Defence Sector Programme’ (DSP). The objective of the DSP is to strengthen democracy and good governance of the defence sector in Africa and thereby contribute to human security and development.

The specific objectives of the DSP relate to the three fundamental issues mentioned above. These are:

to enhance the concepts of collaborative defence, non-provocative defence, confidence-building defence and CSBMs;
to support the functioning and development of sub-regional and regional defence and security organisations;
to enhance the accountability of the armed forces to elected civil authorities within the framework of international and domestic law by research and exploration of country-specific characteristics, bringing comparative practices to bear, including those prevalent in South Africa, and capacity training;
to enhance transparency in military matters through research, publications, stakeholder meetings and sharing of information on a regional basis;
to build capacity of parliamentarians to exercise political control and oversight of the defence sector through sessions with the relevant parliamentary defence committees, including sharing of expertise with members of comparable institutions;
to build capacity within civil society to monitor the defence sector and to engage in the security debate through commissioned research, networking, publications, seminars and workshops;
to strengthen constitutional and legal frameworks to help establish the roles and mandates of the security forces and the hierarchy of authority between them, the legislature and the executive and to assist with implementation;
to build public awareness to encourage public debate on defence issues and the role of the armed forces in society, as well as engagement by non-state actors in defence policy issues;
to support the various departments of defence in the development of defence policy formulation and strategic planning concepts and processes;
to support good and transparent budgeting and public-expenditure management of the defence sector by capacity building around best practices, role-playing, stakeholder meetings, facilitated workshops and seminars;
to assist with appropriate role and function development between security agencies to improve national security management and cost-reduction/optimisation through facilitated workshops, seminars, training, dissemination of information and capacity building;
to support the development of appropriate civic education practices within the armed forces, drawing in part on the extensive documentation recently developed in South Africa for this purpose;
to support and enhance human resource management processes and practises in the various defence departments with special attention to professionalism, representation and the activities of integration, rationalisation, de-mobilisation and reintegration into civil society.

This edition of the Africa Security Review features three articles which relate specifically to reform of the defence sector. The first article, ‘Defence Sector Transformation Challenges for Sub-Saharan Africa’ provides a template for the region against which transformation activities can be planned and by which they can be measured. It also examines defence transformation in South Africa and other regional states and develops a generic model for defence sector transformation. Not all the news is good but this article confirms that many hurdles, which at first seemed impossibly high, have already been overcome.

The second article on ‘SADC: Towards a Security Community’ evaluates progress made on collaborative security in the SADC sub-region. By carefully examining the plethora of pacts, protocols, plans and summit decisions, the article arrives at the conclusion that the SADC region, despite some diplomatic rows, is indeed moving towards a security community.

The final feature article on the Inter-Congolese Dialogue examines the progress and prospects for peace in that violated country. The article decries the marginal achievements of the Inter-Congolese Dialogue but draws some important conclusions from the process for the building of peace in the Great Lakes region.

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