South Africa: A future research agenda for post-conflict reconstruction

Because the key to ending Africa's wars is generally thought to lie in development (and not in defense), this paper proposes that post-conflict reconstruction be recognised, and treated, as a high priority in South African foreign policy. Although South Africa has not lacked the political will to promote development abroad, there has been no credible, well-researched plan to back this commitment. This paper is about developing such a plan and highlights several possible areas of future research.