Dear Colleagues,
Commonly referred to as
Africa's first narco-state, the crisis of Guinea-Bissau provides a
window into the broader threat to stability posed by rising levels of
narco-trafficking in Africa. Absent widespread violence, this threat is
frequently misunderstood and minimized. Doing so overlooks the often
imperceptible hollowing out of state structures that occurs over time
and out of public view as a consequence of the progressive entrenchment
of organized criminal networks. When the ramifications of this
instability do appear, the tendency is to respond to the symptoms rather
than the deep-rooted causes of these crises.
In this ACSS Special Report, "Advancing Stability and Reconciliation in Guinea-Bissau: Lessons from Africa's First Narco-State,"
Davin O'Regan, a Research Associate with ACSS, and Peter Thompson, a
Mediator with Guinea-Bissau's Commission on National Reconciliation,
examine the multifaceted drivers of instability in Guinea-Bissau and the
under-appreciated ripple effects these have for the rest of West
Africa. Recognizing the transnational dimensions of the Guinea-Bissau
crisis, the authors take stock of the lessons from Guinea-Bissau's
experience for the wider counternarcotics challenge transecting Africa,
Europe, Latin America, and the United States. (Click here to access the report.)
ACSS Special Reports present applied research and analysis on unfolding and under-examined security challenges affecting Africa. Previous ACSS research publications can be downloaded at: http://africacenter.org/acss-
French and Portuguese
translations of this report will be sent to subscribers shortly and will
be available on the Africa Center's website at: http://africacenter.org/.
First-time readers can also sign up to ACSS distribution lists at: http://africacenter.org/
As always, I welcome your feedback.
Joseph Siegle, Ph.D.
Director of Research
Africa Center for Strategic Studies
National Defense University
Washington, D.C.
Email: sieglej@ndu.edu
Tel: (202) 685-6808
