Conflict Trends in Africa, 19892019

Between 1989 and 2019, Africa experienced a complex conflict landscape. While battle-related deaths have remained relatively low and stable since the early 2000s, the number of state-based conflicts reached a record high in 2019. There is a concerning increase in the involvement of the Islamic State and a rise in non-state communal conflicts. UN peacekeeping operations in the region saw a significant increase in troop size from 1999 to 2010.

• In 2019, Africa recorded 25 state-based conflicts, the highest number since 1946. These included 11 civil conflicts and 14 internationalized civil conflicts, where external governments were involved.
• The Islamic State (IS) has a significant presence in African conflicts; in 2019, IS was involved in nine of the 25 recorded conflicts in Africa.
• Battle-related deaths in Africa have been relatively low and stable since the early 2000s, with totals not exceeding 10,000 in any year since 2001, except for 2014. In 2019, there were 8,400 battle-related deaths, with Somalia recording the highest number.
• Non-state conflicts, particularly communal conflicts, have risen over the last 10 years. Although the number of these conflicts decreased from 49 in 2018 to 42 in 2019, the level remains high compared to previous decades.
• Africa has the highest number of one-sided violence incidents between 1989 and 2019. In 2019, non-state actors killed 2,675 people through one-sided violence, while governments killed 742 people.
• Conflict is often geographically concentrated in hotspots, such as the Lake Chad region (Northeast Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger) and eastern DR Congo. New violent hotspots have emerged in the border region between Mali and Burkina Faso and the Ambazonia region in Cameroon.
• UN peacekeeping operations (PKOs) in Africa saw a massive increase in average troop size from 2,348 in 1999 to 80,000 in 2010. In 2018, there were eight PKO missions recorded.

APA

Rustad, S. A., & Palik, J. (2020). Conflict Trends in Africa, 19892019. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/8f89b3fe-411f-49f3-b154-6314f38d5bdb/Palik and Rustad - Conflict Trends in Africa 1989-2019 Conflict Trends 5-2020.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Rustad, Siri Aas, and Jlia Palik. Conflict Trends in Africa, 19892019. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2020. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/8f89b3fe-411f-49f3-b154-6314f38d5bdb/Palik and Rustad - Conflict Trends in Africa 1989-2019 Conflict Trends 5-2020.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{rustad2020conflict, author = {Rustad, Siri Aas and Palik, Jlia}, title = {{Conflict Trends in Africa, 19892019}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2020}, month = may, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/8f89b3fe-411f-49f3-b154-6314f38d5bdb/Palik and Rustad - Conflict Trends in Africa 1989-2019 Conflict Trends 5-2020.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }