Transnational Actors and the Conflict in the Great Lakes Region of Africa

Abstract:     
The conflicts within the Great Lakes Region of Africa represent some of the classical cases of external influences within an internal conflict, thus leading to an externalization of what, once, was referred to as internal phenomena, civil wars. Some of the ways of externalizing a conflict is through economic networks and forced migrations. The present research explores the functionalities of transnational economic networks in relations to the illegal exploitation of natural resources and their impact on the ongoing conflict in the Great Lakes Region, and the presence and movement of refugees and their implications on regional peace and stability. Analyzing the role played by refugees in the actual political configuration and the security dynamics within the region.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 52

Keywords: Great Lakes Region, Conflict, Refugees, Transnational Actors

working papers series