Africa fuels conflicts with nearly $2b arms, depriving humans of food and peace
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Conflicts up and down Africa are being fuelled by $1.9 billion yearly arms imports into a continent ravaged by both natural and human disasters and is ranked poorest in the world.
The figure was disclosed by the National Commission for the Coordination and Control of Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NATCOM) which raised concern over the proliferation and infiltration of arms and ammunition in various parts of Africa.
Acting NATCOM Director General of NATCOM Adejare Adegbenro lamented African countries collectively imported about $1.9 billion worth of arms and ammunition in 2019, and recommended sanctions on arms producers to restrict their ability to fuel conflicts and reduce violence and instability.
In his view, the infiltration of arms from external sources hinders a peaceful and prosperous Africa, and efforts should be made to tackle the challenge.
“The arms trade in Africa has far-reaching repercussions, with various regions plagued by conflicts occasioned by the easy access to weapons.
“From insurgencies and civil wars to insurgency, banditry and violent crimes, the proliferation of arms has dwarfed the continent’s progress,” Adegbenro said.
“Infiltration of arms and ammunition from foreign producers heightens these issues, as they often end up in the hands of non-state actors and criminals, perpetuating instability and undermining development efforts.
“In 2019, African countries collectively imported approximately $1.9bn worth of arms, including ammunition, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. However, some of these arms and ammunition might have got in the wrong hands.”
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Arms from China
“For instance, in 2014, a UN group of experts monitoring the arms embargo on the Democratic Republic of Congo [DRC] documented the presence of heavy machine gun ammunition bearing markings that were consistent with Chinese manufacture in armed group arms caches in the country’s North Kivu province,” Adegbenro added.
“In its 2015 report, the group of experts established that this ammunition was originally part of a 2012 delivery of 12.7 × 108 mm ammunition from China to the Armed Forces of the DRC.
“Inasmuch as it is illegal to bear arms except for those security agencies or non-state actors licensed to bear them, private individuals, with reckless abandon, procure arms for clandestine use.
“Hence, the need for a body like NATCOM to ensure the mopping out of illegal arms.
“I believe sanctions on arms producers would restrict their ability to fuel conflicts, thereby reducing the occurrence of violence and instability.”
