African Countries Struggle to Combat Organized Crime Amidst Fragility and Conflict

Kigali, Rwanda - A new report has revealed that many African countries are struggling to combat organized crime due to fragility and conflict.

The 2023 Africa Organised Crime Index, published by the ENACT initiative, found that criminality is higher in countries characterized by increased fragility. According to the report, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Kenya, and Libya had the highest scores for criminality during the reporting period, all of which experienced fragility and conflict.

Conflict and Fragility Pose a Major Obstacle

The findings also show that conflict and fragility pose a major obstacle to a country’s resilience, with security, social, political or economic pressures affecting its ability to respond to organized crime. This highlights the importance of addressing the root causes of fragility and conflict in order to effectively combat organized crime.

Democracy and Resilience

The report highlights the correlation between democracy and resilience, finding that democratic countries have higher levels of resilience than authoritarian states. Countries such as Cabo Verde, South Africa, Mauritius, and Botswana, which are assessed to have higher resilience scores, have relatively well-established checks and balances for state accountability, strong non-state actors, and social protection mechanisms.

Governance Standards in Decline

However, the report also notes that governance standards across Africa have declined significantly over the past decade, resulting in a “less safe, secure and democratic” continent. The decline is attributed to factors such as growing unpopularity of elected leaders, dwindling economic prospects, and external factors like the COVID-19 pandemic.

Corruption: A Key Indicator of Poor Governance

The report emphasizes the importance of good governance in combating organized crime, with corruption being a key indicator of poor governance. The strong relationship between corruption and resilience levels highlights the need for countries to address corruption if they are to improve their resilience to organized crime.

Methodology

The Africa Organised Crime Index is based on three key components:

• The scope, scale, and impact of 15 criminal markets;
• The structure and influence of five criminal actor types; and
• The existence and capacity of countries to be resilient to organized crime, measured across 12 resilience building blocks.

Conclusion

The report provides a detailed assessment of criminality and resilience in Africa, highlighting the need for countries to address the root causes of fragility and conflict if they are to effectively combat organized crime. It is essential that African governments prioritize good governance, corruption prevention, and resilience-building measures to combat organized crime and ensure a safer and more secure future for their citizens.

Key Findings

• Criminality is higher in countries characterized by increased fragility.
• Conflict and fragility pose a major obstacle to a country’s resilience.
• Democratic countries have higher levels of resilience than authoritarian states.
• Governance standards across Africa have declined significantly over the past decade.
• Corruption is a key indicator of poor governance and a major challenge for countries seeking to improve their resilience.