ABSTRACT

Insecurity is a prominent phenomenon that threatens the peace and development of Africa in general and particularly, the Lake Chad Basin [LCB]. One of the factors driving the menace is the phenomenon of youth bulge. This article argues that young people with poor economic prospects are liable to be recruited for violence. Situated within the grievance model, the article shows how youth make up the larger percentage of protesting, violent and armed groups in the region and presents evidence of how grievance against deprivation moves demography to exacerbate insecurity. The article adopts a qualitative approach and relies on secondary data sourced from briefs, government reports, peer-reviewed journal articles and internet sources. The findings show that the endless supply of children and young people in the LCB is a major factor driving insecurity. By examining the phenomenon of Almajiri, child soldiers and youth radicalisation as enablers of conflict and insecurity in the LCB, the article concludes that population explosion amid a lack of resources leads to grievance and fuels insecurity. This is significant given the paucity of literature on the incidence of demography and insurgency in the LCB; which has become a theatre of insecurity in Africa.

摘要

不安全是威胁非洲整体和平与发展的一个突出现象，特别是乍得湖流域[LCB]。造成这种威胁的因素之一是年轻人膨胀的现象。本文认为，经济前景不佳的年轻人很容易被招募从事暴力活动。文章以申诉模型为背景，展示了年轻人如何在该地区的抗议、暴力和武装团体中占据较大比例，并提供了证据，证明对贫困的不满如何导致人口结构加剧不安全。本文采用定性方法，并依赖来自简报、政府报告、同行评审期刊文章和互联网来源的二手数据。调查结果表明，LCB 中儿童和青少年的源源不断的供应是造成不安全的一个主要因素。通过考察 Almajiri、儿童兵和青年激进化现象作为 LCB 冲突和不安全因素的推动因素，文章得出结论，资源匮乏导致人口爆炸会导致不满并加剧不安全感。鉴于关于 LCB 人口统计和叛乱发生率的文献很少，这一点很重要；它已成为非洲不安全的战场。