A critical analysis of post-conflict peace building in Africa: A case study of Rwanda after 1994.

Abstract

Conflict is endemic in the African Continent. Many regions in Africa have experienced conflict or are still in conflict. It is therefore important for us in Africa to manage postconflict situations. This is where Post-Conflict Peace Building comes in. The challenge at hand is not to eradicate conflict, but how to manage it. Many conflicts in Africa are as a result of the resources that we have. They may be environmental, such as Land and Minerals or Political Power to control such resources. PostConflict Peace Building cannot just be militarized. It needs to focus on the root cause of the conflict and how to change that. In the case of Africa, it needs to focus on equitable distribution of resources. This can be done through Institutional reforms, Political reforms and any other initiatives that will ensure that positive peace is achieved in post conflict situations. Many Governmental and Non-governmental organisations are involved in post-conflict peace building. This has really been instrumental in mainstreaming peace- building. The field is really growing fast. In Africa, where conflict has happened a lot and could happen anytime, post-conflict peace building is very important and needs to be embraced by all of us.