What Does FOSDA Do?

One of the most striking features of Africa since the collapse of the Cold War has been the unprecedented scale and scope of internal crises. In West Africa, close to three million people have died in violent armed conflicts since the 1990s. More than twice those numbers of people have been dislocated from their homes. For ten years running, UN Human Development Indices show the highest poverty rates occurring in West Africa. Human rights and the rule of law are still discouragingly low.

HIV/AIDS competes with malaria and other preventable diseases in killing West Africans at an alarming rate. The easy access to illicit small arms and their misuse perpetuate lawlessness and impunity-a legacy of militarised systems of government and civil wars. The net effect of the above West African scenario is numerous and unattractive. They include; high rates of illiteracy, perpetuation of domestic violence, gender inequality, high rate of school drop-outs, electoral violence, corruption and poverty.

In view of the above, FOSDA's programmes focus specifically on promoting the development of comprehensive human security programmes where issues of good governance, economic empowerment, reduction of violent armed conflicts and constitution democracies become a dominant culture in the sub-region.

OBJECTIVES

The main objectives of the Foundation are:

1. To encourage and promote security and development policy-oriented research and training in West Africa;
2. To provide a forum for the exchange of theoretical and practical knowledge and experiences for the security and development of the continent and its people;
3. To stimulate scholarly debates (through conferences, seminars and workshops) about issues related to security and development;
4. To provide capacity building, training in policy, development, and security analysis for policy makers, and civil society groups;
5. To conduct research on, and provide training and policy in the following: peace building and post-conflict reconstruction;
6. To mobilise civil society, and strengthen its capacity to play a more active and significant role in peace building, conflict prevention, resolution and post-conflict reconstruction;

SCOPE OF THE FOUNDATION

The Foundation provides a broad programme for research, training in, and policy on security and development in West Africa. It draws strength from local human resources and provides a forum for the voices from below.

CORE AREAS OF WORK

The core areas of work include:

• Policy Analysis
• Environmental and Resource Utilisation
• Security Analysis
• Gender and Development
• Research, Training and Publication