Volume 6 Number 6

This is the last issue of the African Security Review to be published by the Institute for Security Studies in its present format. Next year will still see six issues of the Review, but with a different layout, a more regional focus and under the joint publication of the ISS and the Instituto Superior de Relacoes Internacionais (ISRI) based in Maputo, Mozambique.

With Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, the Secretary-General of the OAU assuming the post of honorary patron of the ISS, the Institute recommitted itself to capacity-building and outreach programmes in Africa. Part of this commitment is a search for appropriate partnerships with research institutes in Africa that share the commitment of the ISS to the advancement of human security, to good governance, democracy and a vision of collaborative security. The prestigious Instituto Superior de Relacoes Internacionais in Mozambique becomes the first institute with which the ISS has engaged in such a co-operative relationship.

As a result, the Rector of ISRI, Mr Jamisse Taimo, will not only serve on the ISS Management Advisory Board, but also on the editorial committee of the African Security Review in terms of the agreement signed between ISS Executive Director, Dr Jakkie Cilliers and Senhor Taimo on 29 September 1997 at Halfway House. The co-operation between ISRI and ISS will contribute to the development of both institutions and reinforce their regional character. Part and parcel of this process is an expanded joint ISRI/ISS publication programme both in English and Portuguese.

In terms of content, the Review will be changing its character in favour of shorter articles and a lesser number of long research articles, although the overall length will remain unchanged. Further changes relate to the appointment of Ms Sarah Meek as the Head of Information and Publications at ISS. In this capacity, she will assume editorship of both the Review and the Nedcor/ISS Crime Index which tracks crime trends in South Africa and is currently published on a monthly basis. This arrangement will relieve some of the burden from Dr Cilliers who has served as editor of the Review since its inception in 1991 and will allow a more pro-active approach to its contents. It will also allow a greater emphasis on the quality of the contents of the Review. While still encouraging the submission of articles for publication, we will therefore solicit appropriate material for publication on a regular basis.

A new feature of the Review will be an Africa Focus section which will overview current events in Africa and will appear under the authorship of Mr Richard Cornwell who joined ISS from the Africa Institute on 1 September 1997.

Each Review will also include a book review section and the Institute invites authors and publishers to submit appropriate titles for this purpose.

Finally, the current complimentary readership of the Review, and indeed also of the ISS Monographs and ISS Papers will be reviewed to more accurately reflect the changed, broader focus of the Institute. We would, therefore, encourage readers who receive the Review on a complimentary basis to subscribe to the Institute`s publications to ensure that they will continue to receive them in future.

These changes herald a new phase in the dynamic development of the Institute for Security Studies and of the African Security Review. In this process, there have been a number of core funders and project donors who have been crucial in allowing these developments. Ultimately, the success of the ISS is also their triumph.

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