Optimizing community-driven development through sage tradition in Cameroon

Powering community development requires a re-invention of traditional authority. This paper interrogates this proposition: how does sage tradition engender social resilience and what is the impact of traditional authority on the modern governance architecture? Sage tradition construed culturally as elder-led authority is anchored on wisdom and respect for elders—a pivotal asset in community development transactions. Informed by indigenous knowledge, social capital and asset-based concepts, an empirical account of strategic leadership by the elderly is proffered, uncovering indigenous governance in the North West Region, Cameroon. A pyramidal power structure validates village elders as key players in advancing social justice. They offer counsel and arbitrate in community affairs and mobilise community members for infrastructure provision—community halls, equipping schools, digging roads, building bridges and supply of fresh water. Though elder esteemed traditions prove perfunctory, findings show communities are benefiting from the accumulated, incremental cultural assets factored into local development. The paper concludes that thriving cultural assets should be amalgamated through a policy drive that taps into the utility of traditional authority, in synergy with modern state institutions to bolster social development, address poverty and social inequality

Managing Spoilers in a Hybrid War: The Democratic Republic of Congo (1996-2010)

Scholarship on the management of spoilers in a hybrid type of conflict is almost non-existent. Through an examination of the recent Congolese wars and peace efforts (1996–2010), we develop an understanding of how spoilers are managed in a conflict characterised by both interstate and intrastate dynamics. Certainly, more strategies of dealing with spoiler behaviours in this type of conflict are likely to emerge as similar cases are investigated, but our discussion recommends these non-related, but strongly interacting principles: the practice of inclusivity, usually preferred in the management of spoilers, is more complex, and in fact ineffective, particularly when concerned groups’ internal politics and supportive alliances are unconventional. Because holding elections is often deemed indispensable in peacemaking efforts, it is vital that total spoilers be prevented from winning or disrupting them. The toughest challenge is the protection of civilians, especially when the state lacks a monopoly on the use of violence and governance remains partitioned across the country