Ulf Engel

Neopatrimonialism Reconsidered: Critical Review and Elaboration of an Elusive Concept

Abstract The article provides a critical discussion of the literature on ‘patrimonialism’ and ‘neopatrimonialism’ in Development Studies in general and African Studies in particular. Based on Max Webers concept of patrimonialism and legal-rational bureaucracy the authors present their own definition of ‘neopatrimonialism’. Three key conceptual questions are addressed. These are related to the operationalisation of the concept in empirical research: (1) how can neopatrimonialism be delimited vis-à-vis the concepts ‘clientelism’ and ‘patronage’?; (2) how can neopatrimonialism be ‘measured’?; and (3) how does neopatrimonialism relate to classical typologies of political regimes?

Neopatrimonialism Revisited: Beyond a Catch-All Concept

The article provides a critical discussion of the literature on “patrimonialism” and “neopatrimonialism” as far as the use in Development Studies in general or African Studies in particular is concerned. To overcome the catch-all use of the concept the authors present their own definition of “neopatrimonialism” based on Max Weber’s concept of patrimonialism and legal-rational bureaucracy. However, in order to make the concept more useful for comparative empirical research, they argue, it needs a thorough operationalisation (qualitatively and quantitatively) and the creation of possible subtypes which, in combination, might contribute to a theory of neopatrimonial action.

Structural stability: On the prerequisites of nonviolent conflict management

The concept of “structural stability” has been gaining prominence in development policy circles. In the EU’s and the OECD Development Assistance Committee’s (OECD DAC) understanding, it describes the ability of societies to handle intra-societal conflict without resorting to violence. This study investigates the preconditions of structural stability and tests their mutual interconnections. Seven dimensions are analyzed: (1) long-term economic growth, (2) environmental security, (3) social equality, (4) governmental effectiveness, (5) democracy, (6) rule of law, and (7) inclusion of identity groups. The postulated mutual enhancement of the seven dimensions is plausible but cannot be proven. The most significant positive relationship appears between “democracy” and “rule of law,” respectively, on the one hand and the dependent variable “violence/ human security” on the other hand. This points to the usefulness of the political concept of structural stability to promote development policy agendas in this area at least. Applications that reach beyond these initial findings will, however, require further research.

The African Union's New Peace and Security Architecture: Toward an Evolving Security Regime?

ABSTRACT Building on international relations regime theory, this article provides an update on the implementation of the new African peace and security architecture. It reflects on the principles underlying the architectures design, which is discussed as a security regime in the making. The fundamental driver of this as yet proto-regime is the new African Union Commission. At the same time, the adverse interests of some member states, as well as financial and other constraints, impair this process.

Imagining, Implementing, and Integrating the African Peace and Security Architecture: The African Union’s Challenges

ABSTRACT In 2002 the African Union embarked on an ambitious plan to develop and operationalize a comprehensive African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA). Since then, it has become clear that this is truly a journey in unchartered waters, with little in the sense of precedent and off-the-shelf blueprints in Africa or elsewhere. Implementation of APSA continues to take place in a complex institutional environment, driven and at the same time contested by African Union member states, regional organizations, and the African Union Commission with various and changing interests. At the same time, the African continent continues to be plagued by numerous violent conflicts. This article introduces the content of this issue of African Security, which addresses the implementation of APSA from four perspectives: First it takes stock of what has been achieved so far, focusing on eight issue areas where the Union continues to face implementation challenges and which may explain why the APSA is not yet fully operational. Second, it focuses on the use of mediation roadmaps in resolving African conflicts, with a reflection on the strengths and weaknesses of African conflict resolution efforts, here recontextualized in line with the changing landscape of conflicts in Africa. Third, it extends the analysis to consider mediation in the context of other forms of peacemaking and preventive diplomacy by the Union, by focusing on the role of the Panel of the Wise which is often misunderstood as the Union’s mediation arm. Finally, this issue introduces maritime security as an emerging—arguably urgent—policy field, discussing the reasons for the lack of policy coordination and harmonization both within the African Union Commission and between the Commission and the Regional Economic Communities.

Knowledge production on conflict early warning at the African Union

ABSTRACT How does the African Union (AU) generate knowledge about on-going violent conflict as well as post-conflict situations? This article offers an analysis of the multiple sites and sources in the construction of conflict-related knowledge. It also reflects on the various institutional ways this knowledge is filtered into the activities of a wide range of AU actors, starting with the AU Commission, the AU Commission Chairperson and the Peace and Security Council. Emphasis is on the development of the Continental Early Warning System and some of its limitations, the latter partly related to the specific organisational culture of the African Union.

Transitional Justice in Afrika

Wie kaum ein anderer Kontinent hat Afrika sich seit 1994 zu einem Labor von Transitional Justice (TJ) entwickelt. Dabei standen unterschiedliche Typen von Konflikt ebenso wie verschiedenartige Kombinationen von TJ-Politiken im Vordergrund. Empirisch konzentrieren sich die Erfahrungen auf Wahrheits- und Versohnungskommissionen, nationale wie internationale Untersuchungskommissionen sowie internationale Strafgerichtshofe. Jungst dominieren einerseits Versuche der AU-Kommission, verbindliche TJ-Standards fur die AU-Mitgliedsstaaten zu entwickeln, und andererseits die Politik, eine Strafverfolgung von Amtsinhabern durch den Internationalen Strafgerichtshof (ICC) zu verhindern. Since the early 1990s, Africa has served as a vast testing ground for new policies to address impunity, seek truth and justice, and enable reconciliation in fractured societies. Although the results of these accountability efforts have been mixed and uneven, African experiences have contributed to advancing a plethora of domestic and international transitional justice initiatives. Africa’s response to justice mirrors the upheavals of Latin America, which also suffered from false starts and political manipulation before building innovative and dynamic accountability mechanisms. Approaches have ranged from judicial mechanisms, such as international tribunals, hybrid courts, and domestic trials, to non-judicial mechanisms like truth commissions, reparations, and traditional or community-based processes. (AU Panel of the Wise 2013, S. 27).

The African Union, the African Peace and Security Architecture, and Maritime Security

ABSTRACT The content of African maritime security as an emerging policy field is contested. It can be located anywhere between traditional security politics (related to piracy, maritime terrorism and unregulated fishing), developmental and environmentalist concerns, and efforts to regain economic sovereignty over African territorial and offshore waters. As a result, since approximately 2005 the institutional place of maritime security in continental politics has been in flux. This article traces the origins of the debate on maritime security in Africa. The main concern here is to examine the relationship between the nascent African Peace and Security Architecture on the one hand and maritime security and safety politics on the other from both an institutional and a political perspective. Maritime security represents one of a number of peace and security related policy fields in the making that also allows for insights into the division of labor emerging among various stakeholders, such as the African Union Commission, Regional Economic Communities, and African Union member states, and into the related challenges of policy coordination and harmonization.