Guardians of the Continent: The African Standby Force and the Future of Peace in Africa
By. Daniel Herrera
DOI. 10.57912/34692207
For decades, Africa has faced persistent challenges to peace and security, including civil wars, terrorism, political instability, and humanitarian crises. Conflicts in countries such as Somalia, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have caused human suffering and required international intervention. In the past, African states relied heavily on the United Nations (UN) or foreign powers to intervene in crises across the continent. However, the creation of the African Standby Force (ASF) marked a turning point in Africa’s efforts to take responsibility for its own peace and security, rather than rely on outside forces such as the UN. The ASF was established by the African Union in 2003 as part of the African Peace and Security Architecture—a plan within the African Union to stabilize the continent—and was designed to rapidly respond as a peacekeeping force capable of addressing conflicts across Africa. Though it may currently be disorganized, if effectively utilized, the African Standby Force has the potential to become a cornerstone of stability across Africa and a powerful instrument for maintaining peace.
The African Standby Force is comprised of military, police, and civilian personnel from African Union countries. It is intended to respond quickly to crises such as armed conflict, genocide, and humanitarian emergencies. Due to nations in Africa seeing global organizations as ineffective in crisis, there was a strong push for a more localized body. The ASF was partly inspired by the failures of the international community during the 1994 Rwandan genocide, which demonstrated the dangers of slow, uncoordinated international responses to mass atrocities. The genocide contributed to immense instability in the region, the death of more than a million people, and roughly one million refugees fleeing Rwanda. It also led to conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), as violence spilled over the border, which, beginning in 1996, resulted in the deaths of roughly five million people in a still-ongoing conflict. In response to the Rwandan genocide, African leaders sought to develop their own capacity to intervene in situations involving war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity.
Structurally, the ASF is organized into five regionally based standby forces that correspond to Africa’s major geopolitical regions: North, East, West, Central, and South Africa. Each regional force contributes troops and resources that remain stationed in their home countries but are prepared for rapid deployment when needed. This system of decentralization allows the African Union to respond quicker to crises while also ensuring that regional actors—who often have a better understanding of local conditions than international actors—play a central role in peacekeeping operations. A recent example is the success of “Operation Restore Democracy” in the Gambia. In 2017, following the refusal of President Yahya Jammeh to step down after he lost the 2016 Presidential election, troops which were affiliated not with the ASF specifically but rather the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), an African Union affiliate, were sent in to stabilize the nation and enforce the transition of power to the new President, Adama Barrow. Though not strictly executed through the ASF, the operation shows one of the most important and most achievable principles behind the African Standby Force: “African solutions to African problems.” For many years, peacekeeping operations in Africa were led primarily by external powers or international organizations such as the UN. Clear examples, such as the weak and uncoordinated interventions in the DRC and Central African Republic, have not led to stability in either nation.The larger problem at hand is a lack of legitimacy: an unstable nation does not gain by simply having peace-building forces sent into its country. Rather, it gains legitimacy by those forces being logistically strong, working to create trust across the people of the country with humanitarian aid, and serving to address the root cause of the conflict rather than the result. By empowering African states to take the lead in conflict resolution, the ASF aims to strengthen regional ownership of peacekeeping efforts, increasing legitimacy among local populations and reducing dependence on outside actors. Furthermore, African-led missions may be able to deploy quicker than United Nations peacekeeping missions, which often require lengthy diplomatic negotiations before deployment.
African peacekeeping initiatives have already demonstrated the potential impact of regional cooperation. African Union missions, though not affiliated with the ASF, have played a significant role in supporting the Somali government and combating the extremist group al-Shabaab, for example. These operations have involved thousands of troops from multiple African countries working together to stabilize the region and strengthen the Somali state. The operation launched coordinated military offensives with peacekeepers to take back cities held by al-Shabaab and to regain key cities and infrastructure. Alongside engaging in combat, the African Union transported troops, equipment, and enabled humanitarian aid. Though missions are limited in scope, presence of peacemaking forces enables conflict resolution. These missions demonstrate how coordinated African efforts can address security challenges that might otherwise destabilize entire regions.
Even with the African Standby Force’s immense potential, it has faced large problems since creation. One of the main issues is that many African countries don't have enough money to support large peacekeeping forces. This means that African peace operations often have to rely on help from international partners like the United Nations or the European Union. Another problem is that African countries, like most other states, don't agree on everything, which slows down decision-making within the African Union. One example where disagreement hindered peacemaking was in Darfur, in the recent Sudanese Civil War. Scared of interfering with Sudanese sovereignty, some states did not want extensive interference in the conflict. Other nations, alongside the United Nations, wanted a more extensive operation, thus creating a disorganized final operation. The African Standby Force has faced trouble getting to full strength as it is difficult for regional organizations and the African Union command structure to work together cohesively. Rather than pre-emptive action to prevent conflict, the ASF deals with the problem at hand, and doesn’t address underlying causes of conflict. There is also a lack of leadership, as nations will not take a decisive position unless the conflict directly involves them. Though peacemaking operations may be politically motivated, intervention with independent oversight would maintain legitimacy of the operation. Despite these problems, it's still important for African countries to work together to support peace and security on the continent.
The success of the African Standby Force is still very important for the long run, even with the challenges it faces. If the logistical capabilities are improved and more money is invested, the ASF will be better able to handle crises such as genocide, war, or coups. It's also crucial that the regional forces work together more seamlessly. With stronger support from African governments, the force can be sent out quickly when conflicts arise, which would make a big difference in creating peace on the continent. Alongside just support from African nations, larger groups such as the African Development Bank (AfDB), the World Bank, or already existing Regional Economic Communities can provide support to the ASF to help maintain its independence, but also enable its operations. This can be achieved by increasing funding for training, logistics and weapons aid, and by strengthening coordination between already existing regional forces in Africa, such as the AfDB, ECOWAS, and the Southern African Development Community. Enhancing the African Standby Force would help create a system that lets the continent respond quickly to conflicts, end genocide and atrocities, and stabilize African nations. Although the African Standby Force is still in its beginning stages and faces large challenges, it has the potential to create quantifiable change in how Africa handles conflicts. If it receives the support it needs, the African Standby Force could become the guardians of the continent, helping to create a more stable and peaceful future for Africa.
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