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- Convenors:
-
Uzzibi Irmiya
(Babcock University)
Abiola Isikalu (Babcock University)
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- Chair:
-
Jerry Kwarbai
(Babcock University)
- Format:
- Paper panel
- Stream:
- Crisis, conflict, and humanitarian response
- Location:
- 8W 1.33, 8West Building
- Sessions:
- Friday 27 June, -
Time zone: Europe/London
Short Abstract
This panel examines the evolving nature of conflict in the 21st century, focusing on the increasing role and legitimacy of mercenaries in contemporary warfare. It will explore how these changes intersect with development, reshaping the frameworks of conflict transformation and peacebuilding.
Description
In the 21st century, the landscape of conflict is undergoing profound transformation, driven by the shifting roles of non-state actors, including mercenaries. Traditionally seen as external or illegitimate participants in warfare, mercenaries are increasingly being integrated into state and non-state military strategies, blurring the lines between official military forces and private actors. This panel will critically examine how mercenaries are becoming central to modern conflicts and, in some cases, acquiring a semblance of legitimacy within the global security apparatus.
The discussion will address key questions such as: What factors are driving the rise of mercenaries in contemporary conflicts? How is their involvement shaping the outcomes of conflicts, especially in fragile states? And most importantly, how do these trends relate to broader development challenges?
By linking the role of mercenaries to issues of conflict transformation, peacebuilding, and development, the panel will highlight how their involvement in conflicts can affect long-term development goals, from governance and institution-building to the provision of security and stability. Furthermore, the panel will explore how the growing use of mercenaries may influence international norms around conflict resolution and development assistance, ultimately reshaping the way conflicts are understood and addressed in the modern world.
Accepted papers
Session 1 Friday 27 June, 2025, -Paper short abstract
This paper investigates the paradoxical use of ex-militants as security contractors in the Niger Delta. It explores how this evolving form of security outsourcing reshapes conflict dynamics, challenges peacebuilding frameworks, and influences the legitimacy of state actors in conflict transformation
Paper long abstract
The conflict landscape of the 21st century increasingly exhibits indistinct boundaries between state and non-state actors, with private security contractors, including ex-combatants, assuming pivotal roles. This paper analyses the Niger Delta as a significant case study of this trend, emphasising the Nigerian government’s dependence on ex-militants to address oil theft via surveillance contracts. While these arrangements provide short-term security solutions, they raise critical questions about the legitimacy, effectiveness, and unintended consequences of employing former insurgents as state-sanctioned security providers. The discussion will explore the drivers behind this approach, including weak state capacity, political patronage, and economic desperation in fragile contexts. It will analyse how integrating ex-militants into security frameworks impacts conflict dynamics, from the proliferation of arms to the resurgence of militant networks and the erosion of trust in formal institutions. Furthermore, it will connect these developments to broader challenges in peacebuilding and development, particularly in regions where resource control is contested. This paper highlights the paradoxical effects of these contracts: while they temporarily reduce oil theft and violence, they also entrench systemic inequities, incentivise political manipulation, and complicate efforts toward long-term conflict transformation. The paper critically evaluates this phenomenon and contributes to the broader discourse on how non-state actors and private security arrangements intersect with state legitimacy, governance, and international norms around peacebuilding and development. The Niger Delta case underscores the urgent need for holistic strategies that prioritize community-driven solutions, transparency, and sustainable development in conflict-prone regions.
Paper short abstract
This paper examines Russia's strategic maneuvers in West Africa, including military diplomacy, private military contractors such as the Wagner Group, and resource exploitation. It also evaluates the impacts on geopolitical changes, stability in the region, and Russia's international standing.
Paper long abstract
The focus of this research is on the strategic behaviour of Russia in West Africa with the help of its private military companies, economic interests, and military diplomacy. It emphasizes the use of private military companies, like the Wagner Group, in and around the inter-State conflict zones around Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso. These actions, undertaken within the geopolitical realism framework, show Russia’s efforts to weaken the Western grip, acquire raw materials, and foster ties with some regional superpower. Russia has not only provided military aid but has also resorted to resource hand grabbing which has resulted in gross human rights abuses and deepened conflict in the region. By illustrating the new significance of West Africa in the power politics of superpowers, this paper shows the multilateral relation typical of great powers. This article has provided an analytical approach to the new geopolitical realities, the stiffened competitive relations in the West African region, Russia's foreign policy towards the region, and the consequences of regional stability.
Paper short abstract
This paper examines the Wagner Group’s evolution into the Africa Corps and its impact on development in the Sahel. As mercenaries blur lines between security providers and economic actors, we explore their role in perpetuating instability, sovereignty and challenging sustainable progress.
Paper long abstract
The transformation of the Wagner Group into the so-called Africa Corps represents a pivotal moment in the evolving dynamics of conflict and development in the 21st century. Once emblematic of covert Russian foreign policy, this mercenary group has strategically repositioned itself as a quasi-legitimate actor in fragile states across Africa, particularly in the West African Sahel. This paper critically examines how this evolution — from shadowy military contractor to a pseudo-state instrument — affects the development trajectories of African nations. The analysis highlights how the Africa Corps leverages its dual roles as a security provider and an economic actor, intertwining its operations with local governance structures, resource extraction industries, and geopolitical agendas.
The paper argues that while such mercenary groups ostensibly fill governance and security voids, they simultaneously perpetuate cycles of instability by exploiting weak institutional frameworks. Their growing influence challenges traditional notions of state sovereignty, disrupts regional integration efforts, and reshapes the development nexus in ways that prioritise short-term stability over long-term progress.
By focusing on the Sahel, a region grappling with terrorism, poverty, and fragile governance, the paper delves into the socioeconomic implications of mercenary involvement. It questions whether the legitimisation of such actors contributes to development or entrenches dependency and inequality. The paper situates the rise of Africa Corps within broader debates about the commodification of security and its impact on the aspirations of African nations to achieve sustainable peace and development. This critical exploration offers insights into a complex and under-explored dimension of modern conflict transformation.
Paper short abstract
This study looks at how mercenaries are changing the face of conflicts and what that means for security development. I intend to discuss their real impact on local communities to encourage important conversations about this issue.
Paper long abstract
This article looks at how mercenaries are changing their roles in today’s world and gaining legitimacy within global security and development. Once seen as illegal players, they are now becoming part of both state and non-state military strategies, making it harder to understand modern warfare. Using historical methods, this research explores why mercenaries are on the rise and how their actions affect conflict outcomes, especially in vulnerable communities. Through case studies from different regions, the article examines what mercenary involvement means for long-term goals like governance, community stability, and sustainability. We will also discuss how local populations and international law view mercenaries and what that means for peace building efforts. Driven by a desire to understand the complexities of modern conflict and its impact on people’s lives, this study aims to add to the ongoing discussions about security, development, and the role of non-state actors in shaping the future of warfare. By connecting historical insights with today’s challenges, this research seeks to shed light on how mercenaries are redefining their roles in the global security landscape.
Paper short abstract
The study explores the relationship between South African mercenaries in two separate political conflicts in Nigeria with focus on the Nigerian Civil War and the Boko Haram Insurgency.
Paper long abstract
The use of mercenaries has been part of the military effort by the Nigerian government to defeat dissident armed groups that sprang up in the country since independence. Subsumed in this effort are mercenaries from South Africa whose contributions in two major political conflicts in Nigeria cannot be overlooked. Focusing on the Nigerian Civil War and the Boko Haram Insurgency in the 20th and 21st centuries respectively, the study explores the relationship between South African mercenaries of the two armed conflicts in Nigeria. The paper is an attempt to contribute to the need for a studied approach to the role and impact of South African mercenaries in the conduct of the two wars, and also the differences in the use of mercenaries during the Biafran war and the Boko Haram insurgency. The study shows emerging changes in the 21st century engagement of mercenaries there by making a major contribution to understanding the increasing legitimacy and acceptance of mercenaries within the global security apparatus