Managing the supply chain risks of terror in Africa
“War used to be a conflict between states, but not anymore. It is now a conflict between states and non-state actors,” said Benedetta Berti, expert in political violence and non-state armed groups, in a recent TED talk. The collateral of this type of conflict is significant, with the loss of innocent civilian lives, and businesses often grinding to a halt – it is after all the exact intended purpose of terrorist activity. RISKAFRICA looks at the aftermath of terrorism and conflict in Africa, and how it can affect the supply chain.
Tara O’Connor, executive director at Africa Risk Consulting (ARC), says they do analysis on all 54 African states, and the terrorism threat is a real consideration when analysing the state of some African countries. “We are constantly monitoring the changing Islamist threat in Northern Africa, which seems to have spread in an arc from Somalia in the east, across the Sahara down to Mali and then into Nigeria,” she says.