As indicated by Linda Darkwa in her work ‘ The Challenge Of Sub-Regional Security In West Africa'(2011), there are three fundamental wellsprings of SALW in West Africa – existing stocks that are reused; new imports, which may incorporate shiny new weapons and ammo just as utilized weapons reused from outside the sub-district; and neighborhood make generation in nations of the sub-area. Making reference to Claude Ake, Darkwa followed the expansion of SALWs in West Africa to the mid-to-late 1960s, when dictator, abusive and exclusionary strategies utilized by post-freedom pioneers for the sake of country working in exceptionally different social orders prompted discontent, fights among sections of their populaces and, in extraordinary cases, common war, as in Nigeria (1967–70). With most roads for serene dissent shut, the political restriction or avoided areas/bunches in certain nations took to equipped viciousness in their battles for power or opportunity (Ake 1996).
In this manner, as indicated by Darkwa somewhere in the range of 1963 and 1990, there were about 38 real and endeavored upsets in the sub-district, even as a few states stayed under tyrant one gathering system. In spite of the fact that the overthrows were embraced by the military, regularly sections of the non military personnel populace thoughtful to the beliefs of the upset chiefs were equipped and depended with the obligation of implementing the statutes of the military systems. At times, exchange unionists, understudies and jobless youth at the outskirts of society were given arms and comprised as common guard powers with the order to police their social orders and bring to book violators of the new and regularly extreme code of the upset heads. Such overthrows along these lines exacerbated the dissemination of arms into the regular citizen area. Darkwa, be that as it may, noticed that the multiplication of arms during this period was not on such a wide scale because of a few difficulties, including transportation and getting assets for installment. These two difficulties have fallen away, as globalization has given choices to transportation and globalized fund takes into account simple exchanges all through the world – even in unlawful merchandise. The administration challenges talked about above arrived at a peak late during the 1980s, bringing about outfitted clashes in a few nations in the sub-district. Liberia and Sierra Leone turned into the instances of “bombed states” in West Africa because of the severe common wars that assaulted them (and undermined neighboring states), however there were likewise little scale insurrections in Guinea, Senegal and Mali. These contentions were fuelled and supported by an ensured stockpile of SALW made all the more promptly accessible from nations of the previous soviet coalition (Stevenson 2005).
Another wellspring of multiplication as per Darkwa is the SALWs assigned for peacekeeping and harmony bolster tasks. Such weapons may fall into an inappropriate hands when renegade gatherings hijack peacekeepers. Eric Berman (2001) gave an inventory of episodes during which arms were seized from peacekeepers. For example, as indicated by Berman, the RUF caught a lot of weapons and ammo from peacekeepers during the fight for Freetown and furthermore “steered ECOMOG [ECOWAS’s checking group] at Kono where the West African power had positioned the vast majority of its materiel, catching every one of its weapons, including three tanks” (Berman 2001: 9). The RUF additionally caught weapons by ambushing peacekeepers. In 2000, RUF caught 500 United Nations peacekeepers. In spite of the fact that they were liberated and some substantial military weapons were returned (Leighton 2000), most presumably in light of the fact that the radicals expected that their size made them effectively noticeable, there were no reports of different weapons and hardware being returned. It tends to be securely presumed that the peacekeepers’ little arms (likely by virtue of their little size) were among the weapons and hardware not returned (Leighton 2000). Demobilization programs toward the finish of the contentions in Sierra Leone and Liberia were not able mop up all the SALW, particularly since some of them had discovered their way into different performance centers of contention in the sub-district. Accessible proof shows arms deals by ex-warriors to different gatherings in the sub-area occupied with outfitted battles. Toward the finish of their voyage through obligation, some returning security and peacekeeping officials can carry in weapons either purchased for unimportant wholes or taken as crown jewels from murdered or caught warriors (Duquet 2009).
Darkwa referenced another wellspring of arms into the sub-locale as those through the private military organizations (PMCs) giving security in upset nations. The Sandline undertaking represents the difficulty of using PMCs even with the disappointment of the universal network to act conclusively. In 1997, after the oust of Sierra Leonean President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah, courses of action were made with Sandline International for the arrangement of military gear and administrations. Regardless of a Security Council arms ban, the Sierra Leonean government gave an end-client testament to the acquisition and transportation of arms into Sierra Leone (Legg and Ibbs 1998). The Sandline undertaking delineates the conceivable outcomes of evading arms embargoes by utilizing the administrations of PMCs, whose legitimateness is covered in discussions.
Government arms reserves can likewise be another wellspring of illegal multiplication. Duquet (2009), utilizing Nigeria’s Niger Delta as a contextual investigation, contends this was the situation at the start of the insurrection when renegade gatherings had not yet completely taken advantage of the oil “war economy”. It is, nonetheless, important that expansion from government stores can likewise occur without outfitted clash, for example during jail breaks as well as break-ins by criminal gatherings needing weapons. State security powers are likewise recognized as a wellspring of unlawful little arms multiplication. In spite of the fact that Nigeria is alluded to in Duquet’s work, the marvel is in no way, shape or form constrained to Nigeria. For instance, on 17 May 2008, Ghanaian police revealed the capture of one of its officials for endeavoring to sell an AK-47 and 30 rounds of ammo to an individual from a warring group in a contention that had required sending of an unexpected of police to give security. The captured official was an individual from this police unforeseen (in the same place).
Neighborhood or specialty produce by metalworkers in the sub-district may likewise offer ascent to expansion. Studies show that neighborhood metalworkers have in light of the downturn in farming and harvest costs, moved to the production of art weapons as an endurance system and methods for gaining higher earnings. Nations, for example, Mali and Nigeria permit the assembling of certain sorts of little arms in neighborhood resistance businesses for use by their military and barrier segments, yet such production is illicit in a few different nations in the sub-area. Various difficulties emerge in connection to neighborhood make. There is an absence of reliably solid information on the sorts and amounts of weapons created and there are infringement of generation licenses as makers take part in the generation of non-approved weapons. What’s more, makers regularly work with old licenses, which makes it hard to assess what number of makers exist and the quantity of weapons fabricated. Aside from this, underground enterprises exist in nations where neighborhood creation is unlawful and condemned. Aning (2005), composing on Ghana where there is a prohibition on weapon generation, recommends that there are around 2,500 metalworkers with the ability to deliver weapons in two of Ghana’s 10 locales, Ashanti and Brong Ahafo, and appraisals yearly creation of about 200,000 guns. The forswearing by conditions of the presence of the issue makes it hard to devise suitable reactions.
SALW AND ECOWAS SECURITY
Micheal Brzoska and Frederic S. Pearson in their Arms and Warfare Escalation De-acceleration and Negotiation (1994) led an inside and out investigation into the elements of arms accessibility and fighting. The paper looked into various wars crosswise over different locales of the world and tried to reveal the connection between arms accessibility and the probability of war. In their investigation, the creators analyzed the intentions in arms supply by delivering countries where they recognized key premium, which they contemplated to be utilized by creating countries to reinforce inviting states so as to get benefits and the business thought processes which as indicated by them are represented by simply business premium. They opined that, where arms provided is guided by key intrigue; limitation is regularly applied when such supply gives off an impression of being fit for counterbalancing territorial parity. The paper refered to the case of the inlet locale where arms supply was controlled to counteract either Iran or Iraq from rising as a predominant power in the area. The paper anyway noticed the disappointment of such arrangements over the long haul likewise refering to the effect these reserve of arms had in Iraq’s consequent raging of Kuwait and remain off against the worldwide alliance in 1991. Where supply is administered by business intrigue it contemplated that limitation must be applied when such supply clashes with business intrigue, as cause the anger of a bigger purchaser. The paper included that most post cold war arms supply are business driven.
In tending to the connection among arms and viciousness, the creators referenced the idea of prevention which advocates for arms development as a panacea to war. It tests the legitimacy in the basic announcement “On the off chance that you need harmony, get ready for war” by assessing patterns in arms development. The creators introduced proof showing that despite what might be expected arms development had transcendently lead to war. It anyway noticed that this pattern has been generally seen in ordinary clash circumstance. It strengthened this finding by utilizing Singer’s theory that ‘The more prominent a country’s military limit whenever the more noteworthy its probability being engaged with war inside five years.” (Singer, 1991:3) The creators additionally offered memorable
