Countering Terrorism in Africa

Source: Global Development Briefing

Countering Terrorism in Africa: Dr. Susan Rice

This week the Briefing invited Dr. Susan Rice, the US Assistant Secretary of
State for African Affairs from 1997-2001, to share her thoughts on Africa's
role in the global anti-terror campaign. Her remarks follow:

The US-led anti-terror coalition is close to neutralizing al Qaeda's
Afghanistan base. While this is an encouraging start, the US and other
nations must address another core reality: Africa is the world's soft
underbelly for global terrorism. If countries around the world intend to win
the war on terror, Africa must be an important focus of our long-term
anti-terror efforts.

Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations are active throughout East,
Southern and West Africa, as well as North Africa. These organizations plan,
finance, train and execute terrorist operations in many parts of Africa.
Terrorist organizations take advantage of Africa's porous borders and weak
law enforcement to move men, weapons and money around the globe. They
manipulate poor and disenfranchised populations, recruiting from the ranks
of the desperate and poverty-stricken.

To counter these conditions, the US and other nations must help those many
African countries that are willing to cooperate in the war on terror but
lack the means. Boosting investment to improve border controls and
intelligence collection, strengthen law enforcement and build effective
judicial institutions in Africa is a critical first step. It will require
tens of millions of dollars in extra aid funding in the next few years.

More fundamentally, and over the long term, the US and other countries must
appreciate that addressing Africa's development needs is intrinsically
linked to fighting terrorism. Poverty and corrupt or ineffectual government
help breed terrorism. Until many African states are more economically and
politically sound, terrorists will continue to find foot-soldiers among
their poor, young, and largely under-educated populations. To emerge
victorious in this battle, the US and other countries must open their
markets completely to goods and services from the developing world, provide
more trade and investment financing, bridge the digital divide, bolster
democratic institutions, invest more in debt relief, increase assistance for
education, build health infrastructure, treat the infected, and find a
vaccine for HIV/AIDS. Just as importantly, African peoples and African
governments will have to provide the leadership, the transparency and the
will to forge a better future. With mutual commitment and sustained
investment, we can achieve mutual security and, eventually, even mutual
prosperity.

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Dr. Susan Rice: US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, 1997-2001