Mechanisms for preventing, reducing and managing conflicts and their effectiveness.

Disarmament Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR)

• The Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) process is a complex challenge but fundamental to the protection of civilians during the transition to peace.

• DDR plays a vital role in a peace process with regards to previous action taken in the prevention of movements of arms and combatants across borders and in the implementation of disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration programmes.

• The role of women as combatants and the exploitation of child soldiers need to be addressed in all DDR programmes.

• Donors and participants within structures such as humanitarian and development organisations should be encouraged to continue supporting and providing guidance on DDR programmes.

• Currently South Africa at the request of the African Union has deployed 39 military personnel in Cote D'lvoire to assist with their DDR programme.
• Continental Early Warning Systems (CEWS)

• To strengthen the AU's capacity for the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts, a Peace and Security Council (PSC) was created and came into force in December 2003. Early Warning is a vital component in the functioning of the PSC.

• According to Article 4(b) of the Protocol Relating to the Establishment of the PSC, "the early warning system is intended to facilitate early responses to contain and manage crisis situations so that the PSC can manage and, where possible, prevent conflicts".

• Four key issues determine the operationalisation of the CEWS, they are:

• Data Collection
• Strategic Analysis
• Reports and Engagement with Decision makers
• Co-ordination and Collaboration

Regional Early Warning

• SADC members have agreed that the SADC Early Warning System will make use of the United Nations Humanitarian Early Warning System (HEWS), which was developed in 1999 by the Department for Humanitarian Affairs - now called the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

• The OCHA model would have to be adapted to meet certain African requirements.

• This model compliments the multilateral stance the continent maintains on conflict resolution and Peacekeeping in general.

• The fact that the AU is regarded as a regional agency of the United Nations provides numerous opportunities for the provision of assistance, training, capacity building and the sharing of information within the structures of the same (OCHA) model.

Civil Society involvement

• Civil Society involvement in Early Warning is regarded as a crucial partnership, where the Civil Society will be involved in most aspects except, decision making.

• South Africa might have the capacity to manage Early Warning in a closed system at national level but other SADC, ECOWAS and IGAD countries do not have similar capacities.

• The AU will not be able to administer Early Warning in a closed environment. Therefore, operationally it makes sense that any Early Warning System should make use of an 'open' system to accommodate the above concern.

• This also allows African governments and Regional Economic Communities to benefit from offers of assistance and capacity building.

• The lead department on Early Warning at Regional and National level in South Africa is the National Intelligence Co-Ordinating Committee (NICOC).

African Standby Force (ASF)

• The PSC is currently working on an ASF vision 2010 policy document that will enable the AU to adopt more of a leadership role in the development of a continental Standby Force arrangement.

• Funding and donor participation, with regards to the ASF would be guided by the vision document as well as by Regional Standby Brigade policies and priorities.

• The building blocks of the ASF would be the five Regional Standby Forces (RSF).

• The role of the AU in this regard would be to provide guidance and leadership to the Regions.

• According to the AU Commission, ECOWAS and SADC are the only two regions who have met the phase I deadline of 2005, wherein it was expected that the regions would have their Regional Brigades established already.

• The other regions have provided assurances that their Regional Standby Capability would be ready for deployment within a year.

Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Standby Force

• The SADC Standby Force is established within the context of the African Standby Force as agreed by member states of the African Union. This process is very much consistent with Principles and Values upheld by SADC.

• SADC Standby Force, will comprise of:

• SADC Standby Brigade
• SADC Civpol
• Regional Early Warning Centre
• Regional Peace Keeping Centre, as SADC Centre of Excellence. (SADC Specific)

• All efforts are made to have these components co-ordinated within/by the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Co-operation sub-structures, in order to achieve the intentions of having a SADC Standby force as an appropriate constituent structure of the African Standby Force.

Post Conflict Reconstruction and Development (PCRD)

• None of the current socio-economic development mechanisms in Africa have a primal focus on developing communities or states that have been affected by conflict.

• The African Union has, therefore, put in place a Draft Policy Framework for PCRD.

• The document "is intended to serve as guide that can be adapted and applied to individual countries or sub-regions emerging from conflicts to assist them in their endeavours towards reconstruction, security and growth".

• The AU noted recently that PCRD would become the driving discussion in Africa in the next 15 to 20 years, thus showing a commitment to moving away from conflict and more towards to developing the continent.

• The policy framework itself emphasises a great need for PCRD programmes to be driven by and for African people.

• Where the AU will provide guidance to the RECs who will assist the individual countries in the implementation of the PCRD programmes.