African Union Kampala Convention: The Continuing Dialogue on the Protection of Internally Displaced Persons in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

Millions of displaced persons in sub-Saharan Africa annually take the risk of moving from their communities to the camps and host communities of neighbouring areas. Therefore, the article puts into perspective the danger of forced displacement for sub-Saharan Africa’s young and growing population. With a population of displaced persons estimated at 40.5 million in 2021, of which 50% are below 18 years of age, the sub-Saharan African region is central to any strategy for curbing internal displacement in different African states. Using the welfare state theory as the framework of analysis, this article evaluates all the nuances of internal displacement in sub-Saharan African countries. It highlights the role of the African Union (AU) in supporting countries in the combat against the continuous tragedy of forced displacement. In addition, the article focuses on the failure of the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention), which is a treaty formulated in 2009 and enforced in 2017, to solve the problem. The article, thus, shows that there is a need to strengthen the capacity of state and non-state actors through the AU Kampala Convention, create regional frameworks to control internal displacement and intensify awareness of the dangers of internal displacement. There is also a need to impress on the managers of governance in the sub-Saharan African region that Africa, as the epicentre of displacement, is politically and constitutionally responsible for millions of citizens caught up in the web of internal displacement. However, the apportioning of responsibility to the AU is missing in almost all narratives on internal displacement.