Political Violence and the Illicit Economies of West Africa

Bibliographic Data

ID5111014
AuthorsVanda Felbab-Brown, Vanda Felbab‐Brown (Brookings Institution), James J F Forest (0000-0002-1765-1817, Joint Special Operations University, corresponding author)
Year2012
Volume24
Issue5
Pages787-806
Publication date2012-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueTerrorism and Political Violence (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0954-6553 • E-ISSN: 1556-1836
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/09546553.2011.644098
OpenAlexW1966659134
LanguageEN
Citations received8

This comparative analysis draws on field research in several West African countries to illustrate the dynamic relationships between political violence and organized crime in this sub-region. These relationships are often transactional, and almost always on a temporary basis. While some alliances of convenience may be forged, in other cases an adversarial relationship exists between organized crime and terrorist networks. In some cases, key actors within West African governments have benefited from these relationships. We then examine recent policies and strategies pursued by the U.S. and the international community that, in the name of combating terrorism, seek to constrain the illicit economies of the region, but in doing so may do more harm than good. The article concludes with some policy recommendations based on this analysis

Adversarial system · Criminology · Development economics · Economics · Economy · Field research · Harm · Organised crime · Political economy · Political science · Political violence · Politics · Social science · Sociology · Terrorism · Crime, Illicit Activities, and Governance · Law

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub