The nexus between regional conflict systems and war economies using Sierra Leone and West Africa in the 1990s as a case study

Some of the most challenging conflicts in the world are currently occurring in Africa: the crises in the Darfur region of Sudan, Sierra Leone in the 1990s, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to name but a few (Pan, 2005: Internet). Armed conflicts on the African continent have destroyed essential infrastructure and ecosystems, inflicted widespread suffering and caused the displacement of millions of citizens (Abegunrin, 2009: 108). Academics have distinguished between the different types of conflict in Africa and several have been identified (Olonisakin, 2007: 266-73). These include liberation wars, post-independence inter-state conflicts, intra-state conflicts, Cold War assisted conflicts, and conflict in post-Cold War Africa. Conflict management or resolution varies from multidimensional peace operation interventions by the United Nations (UN), African Union (AU) and other humanitarian, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), to the arbitration of competition and conflict by religious and other social groups.