Conflict Prevention and Management in Africa: Role of Track Two Diplomacy in Kenya.
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Date
2020Author
Omollo, Daniella A
Type
ThesisLanguage
enMetadata
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This study focused on track II diplomacy in conflict prevention and management in
Africa; and specifically in Kenya. Objectives of the study included examining how
track II diplomacy has led to conflict prevention and management in Africa, to find out
how track II diplomacy has helped in preventing and managing conflict in Kenya and
assessing the key challenges and future prospects of track II diplomacy in managing
conflicts in the continent. The study was founded on liberal theory. Survey research
design was adopted. Primary data was collected using structured questionnaires
directed at different non-state actors like the civil societies, media, private citizens and
non-governmental institutions. The data collected was then analyzed qualitatively and
quantitatively in line with the study objectives. Findings established that track II
diplomacy has broadly been employed in Africa, with notable countries including
Mozambique, South Africa, DRC and Kenya. The employment of track II diplomacy
in the enlisted states involved the use of non-state members such as religious leaders,
youth leaders, influential business people, local NGOs and members of the international
community. Application of track II diplomacy helped to restore order amongst
adversaries, helped to voice the demands of victims, addressed the concerns of affected
communities and facilitated justice for individuals in the community by bringing
perpetrators of the war to book. In Kenya, notable conflicts necessitating the use of
track II diplomacy included the 2007-2008 post-election violence, 2017 violence,
conflicts amongst the pastoralist communities in Baringo and Turkana and conflicts at
the border between Kenya and Somali. The use of track II diplomacy helped in opening
and improving channels of communication, changing attitudes of conflicting parties
about the “other”, restoring relationships by building trust, offering new opportunities
for negotiation, changing the dynamic of conflict by strengthening voices of moderation
and building stable infrastructure of peace. Challenges facing track II diplomacy as
identified in this study included introduction of ‘wrong’ diplomats, introduction of right
diplomats but with limited influence on policy formulation, changing of sides by
diplomats, changing of the peace keeping environment and the dismissal of the efforts
of track II diplomats in the official negotiation processes. The researcher concluded that
track II diplomacy has been very important in managing and preventing conflicts in
Africa, together with track I and other peace keeping processes.
Publisher
University of Nairobi
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United StatesUsage Rights
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/Collections
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