The Security Arena in Africa

Based on in-depth fieldwork, this critical analysis of the realities of security on a local level within 'fragile states' provides a bottom-up perspective on discussions surrounding peace and security in Central and East Africa, with first-hand insights and vivid real-world examples from some of the hardest to reach places in the region.

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The labels 'state fragility' and 'civil war' suggest that security within several African countries has broken down. As Tim Glawion observes, however, while people do experience insecurity in some parts of conflict-affected countries, in other areas they live in relative security. Conducting in-depth field-research between 2014 and 2018, The Security Arena in Africa is based on first-hand insights into South Sudan and the Central African Republic during their ongoing civil wars, and Somalia's breakaway state of Somaliland. Gaining valuable accounts from the people whose security is at stake, this bottom-up perspective on discussions of peace and security tells vivid stories from the field to explore complex security dynamics, making theoretical insights translatable to real-world experiences and revealing how security is created and undermined in these fragile states.