Africa’s Role in Global Terrorism: Why It Matters Now

Africa is often overlooked in the global terrorism narrative; however, sociocultural vulnerabilities, the activities of competing violent extremist organizations (VEOs), and conflict prone environments suggest the region will become a key horizon for global terrorism. Given the increasing interconnectedness of Africa based VEOs to regional and global counterparts, the looming threat in Africa is simply not just an African problem. Terrorism, coupled with foreign fighter flows and the illegal trafficking of people, weapons, and narcotics, is contributing to destabilization in Africa, but also poses a threat to other parts of the world. In addition, North Africa is one of the largest contributors of foreign fighters to Iraq and Syria, and the potential return of such fighters is likely to significantly increase instability in the near term. The question about Africa is not if terrorism will take root, but rather how much terrorism will entrench on the continent, and how much the world is willing to risk by allowing it to occur.