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Over time,  has faced a of armed conflicts, including civil wars in Sierra Leone, Liberia, and C么te D鈥橧voire; coups d鈥櫭﹖ats in Niger, Guinea, and The Gambia; religious and ethnic violence in Benin, Nigeria, and Mali; and . Despite numerous attempts at conflict mediation from international non-profits and global institutions, traditional peacebuilding models have largely been unsuccessful at building a long-term, sustainable peace known as 鈥�positive peace鈥� due largely to their top-down nature. 

As  have shown, engaging a variety of  in peacebuilding generates a more integrated approach to conflict resolution and post-conflict stabilization. As this 鈥溾�� gains traction, peacebuilding strategy has come to include an array of local actors, specifically entrepreneurs. While entrepreneurship is not a panacea for conflict, its inherently local ability to address root causes of conflict and already skyrocketing presence in the region鈥攅specially among the booming youth population鈥攑ositions it as a promising force in contributing to sustainable peace. 

Entrepreneurship in West Africa: An Overview

While traditional literature on business and peace has focused on multinational or national corporations, small-scale entrepreneurship () is a  form of business employment and ownership in developing nations, including those experiencing conflict. In fact, small businesses account for up to 80% of businesses in , as conflict zones generally lack strong formalized institutions, and business creation becomes a . 

Both in and out of conflict zones, entrepreneurship rates in West Africa are booming. According to an African Development Bank Group , 22% of Africa鈥檚 working-age population is starting a business, with rates as high as 40% in Nigeria. The  and innovative nature of many individuals across the continent, a unique and explosive creativity dubbed  by Nigerian-American journalist , has contributed to entrepreneurship鈥檚 rising force in West Africa and its salience to peacebuilding strategy. 

Entrepreneurship, Economic Development, and Youth Engagement 

Entrepreneurship first entered the peacebuilding conversation due to its ability to generate income, employment, and economic gains. By building capacity and training laborers, entrepreneurs are key actors in , which has been  numerously as a root cause of violence and unrest. Entrepreneurs  by identifying unfulfilled needs and taking economic risks to fill these needs through firm creation and the generation of new services, ideas, and products. These economic contributions are thought to help reduce poverty rates as well as create alternative paths to engaging in violent extremist or conflict activity, as seen in a 乐鱼 体育 report on C么te d鈥橧voire.

As the report acknowledges, many West African nations face an endemic of youth unemployment which, coupled with the , can breed frustration and disengagement. This presents an opening for greater youth involvement in 鈥溾��, which is constituted by illegal or criminal economic activity or recruitment to violent extremist groups, both of which exacerbate conflict. Most individuals do not desire to join violent extremist groups鈥攖aking up arms and risking their own lives in the process鈥攂ut in the absence of effective, legal opportunities for income generation, it may feel like the only option. When presented with the opportunity to start a business and thus a legal path to prosperity, conflict is less appealing, and young people are to defer to this option. 

While economic strife and hardship are s to a relapse into violence, economic benefits alone are not enough to create sustained, long-term peace.  suggest that in developing nations experiencing conflict (as with some West African nations), the economic benefits of entrepreneurship are  and . Thus, positive peace cannot be supported merely through economic gains. The conversation regarding entrepreneurship and peacebuilding must go beyond the macro-level economic trends and include the other benefits of small business creation, such as its ability to generate stability. 

Entrepreneurship, Stability Generation, and Reintegration

After the immediate cessation of hostilities, fostering is key to preventing a relapse into violence. Entrepreneurship can assist in stabilization by creating long-term buy-in into the economy and resulting aversion to violent disruption. A powerful example of this buy-in occurred in , where more than 900 firms came together in 2013 in recognition of the conflict鈥檚 negative effects on profits. The Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) spearheaded the  campaign, which sought to influence key actors for a peaceful democratic transition through 200+ peace initiatives over 15 months focused on national cohesion, conflict mitigation, and citizen awareness campaigns. 

It is important to note that the connection between economic buy-in and stability generation does not suggest that without buy-in, there is no desire for stability; conflict is a profoundly complicated phenomenon, and individuals often find themselves involved without consent. This notion of buy-in merely outlines how, when economic ventures are at risk, individuals have monetary incentives to seek alternative pathways to peace before resulting in violence. In this way, local entrepreneurs and their business creation can help facilitate post-conflict stability鈥攁 key factor in positive peace鈥攁nd prevent a relapse into conflict. 

Other  of stability generation by entrepreneurs occur when entrepreneurship is used to reintegrate ex-combatants into society through programs, such as . In a  of Uganda, researchers found that entrepreneurship created opportunities for recognition, networking, and innovation at an individual and societal level, contributing to post-conflict recovery. In Nigeria, peacebuilding programs have  entrepreneurship to provide effective pathways to legal market activities for ex-insurgents. 

Social Entrepreneurship and Peacebuilding 

Lastly, entrepreneurship provides a unique opportunity for creativity and innovation and provides the option for individuals to engage in . By centering their business venture around a facet of conflict such as reintegration, entrepreneurs can contribute to peace by  directly around peacebuilding. As those who witness and experience conflict firsthand, local entrepreneurs have a unique perspective and deeper knowledge of the intricacies of violence in their nation or community, which empowers their ability to generate creative solutions through business that traditional top-down peacebuilding models often overlook.

Conclusion and Recommendations 

Across the continent, individuals living both in and out of conflict zones are finding new ways to generate income in the  and the presence of conflict. The micro-, medium, and small enterprises (MSMEs) emerging from this surge are providing benefits in economic development and stability generation. 

It is vital to consider entrepreneurs not just as contributors to peace but as locally-embedded peacebuilders themselves. 

Based on entrepreneurship鈥檚 economic benefits and  inherently local nature, the international community must focus on foreign direct investment, , financial capital providence, and partnerships with locally-based MSMEs, specifically in conflict zones, to increase the  of starting a business. This process has begun, reflected in the recent  engagement with MSMEs, the  emphasis on business investment, and the 鈥檚 focus on strengthening business partnerships and empowering entrepreneurs. This momentum must continue and expand further to include more emphasis on the importance of MSMEs in locally-led peacebuilding. 

Additionally, international bodies, regional institutions, and governments seeking to create lasting peace should focus on generating systems that break down the barriers to entrepreneurial prosperity and divert incentives for destructive entrepreneurship. These systems must vary based on the individual circumstances of each nation and center local voices in their creation, potentially taking shape as infrastructure development programs, social cohesion initiatives, or business-based educational training.

While local start-ups alone are not panaceas for conflict, and the resulting benefits, such as job creation, innovation, and buy-in, are locally-driven pieces of a deeply nuanced peacebuilding puzzle. Due to their ability to address the root causes of violence and foster stability, local entrepreneurs have emerged as key innovators of a vital product for hundreds of thousands of regional stakeholders: a locally-generated positive peace. 

Juliet Lancey is the Communications Intern with the 乐鱼 体育's Africa Program for the Summer 2023 term. She is pursuing a BA in International Affairs accompanied by a concentration in International Development and a minor in Journalism at George Washington University. 

The opinions expressed on this blog are solely those of the authors. They do not reflect the views of the 乐鱼 体育 or those of Carnegie Corporation of New York. 乐鱼 体育鈥檚 Africa Program provides a safe space for various perspectives to be shared and discussed on critical issues of importance to both Africa and the United States.