Malawi and Tanzania border dispute over Lake Malawi and Cote D'Ivoire: sporadic attacks make security sector reform necessary

This briefing from the Institute for Security Studies addresses two distinct regional security issues: a renewed border dispute between Malawi and Tanzania over Lake Malawi triggered by oil and gas exploration, and the urgent need for security sector reform in Côte d'Ivoire following sporadic attacks by armed groups.

• A border dispute between Malawi and Tanzania over Lake Malawi has resurfaced following the Malawian government's decision to grant an exploration licence to the British firm Surestream Petroleum for oil and gas. Tanzania has requested that Malawi cease these activities until the boundary is resolved, with concerns that the discovery of 'black gold' could escalate the conflict.
• The legal disagreement over Lake Malawi centers on conflicting interpretations of borders: Malawi relies on the 1890 Anglo-German agreement to claim the entire body of the lake, while Tanzania argues that international law requires the border to be in the middle of the water mass.
• In Côte d'Ivoire, recent attacks by armed groups in Abidjan—specifically in Akouedo and Yopougon—have killed twelve soldiers, highlighting the critical need to accelerate security sector reform (SSR). The current security situation remains fragile, with the government attributing violence to militias and former security forces linked to former president Laurent Gbagbo.
• Security sector reform in Côte d'Ivoire is stalled, having primarily only achieved the integration of former rebels into the Republican Forces of Côte d'Ivoire. Major remaining challenges include improving the army's command structure, implementing the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) process for 'dozos' (traditional fighters), and managing a proliferation of small arms while under a UN arms embargo.
• Political and social instability in Côte d'Ivoire persists due to the Front Populaire Ivoirien's (FPI) boycott of the 2011 legislative elections and a lack of national dialogue. President Alassane Ouattara has proposed creating a National Security Council and a single authority for DDR to address these challenges.

APA

Institute for Security Studies (2012). Malawi and Tanzania border dispute over Lake Malawi and Cote D'Ivoire: sporadic attacks make security sector reform necessary. https://issafrica.org/research/publication-archives/cpra-daily-briefing/malawi-and-tanzania-border-dispute-over-lake-malawi-and-cote-divoire-sporadic-attacks-make-security-sector-reform-necessary

Chicago

Institute for Security Studies. Malawi and Tanzania border dispute over Lake Malawi and Cote D'Ivoire: sporadic attacks make security sector reform necessary. 2012. https://issafrica.org/research/publication-archives/cpra-daily-briefing/malawi-and-tanzania-border-dispute-over-lake-malawi-and-cote-divoire-sporadic-attacks-make-security-sector-reform-necessary.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Security Studies |title=Malawi and Tanzania border dispute over Lake Malawi and Cote D'Ivoire: sporadic attacks make security sector reform necessary |date=August 2012 |url=https://issafrica.org/research/publication-archives/cpra-daily-briefing/malawi-and-tanzania-border-dispute-over-lake-malawi-and-cote-divoire-sporadic-attacks-make-security-sector-reform-necessary |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforsecuritystudies2012malawi, author = {{Institute for Security Studies}}, title = {{Malawi and Tanzania border dispute over Lake Malawi and Cote D'Ivoire: sporadic attacks make security sector reform necessary}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2012}, month = aug, url = {https://issafrica.org/research/publication-archives/cpra-daily-briefing/malawi-and-tanzania-border-dispute-over-lake-malawi-and-cote-divoire-sporadic-attacks-make-security-sector-reform-necessary}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }