International Law and Boundary Disputes in Africa

Lord Curzon's view that frontiers are the razor's edge on which hang suspended the modern issues of war or peace, of life or death to nations holds true in the 21st century.

Sovereignty and jurisdiction, as well as effective territorial control, are problematic concepts the world over and Africa has experienced a number of territorial disputes over land and maritime boundaries both in the past and the present, due in part to its colonial and post-colonial history.

This book explores the legal, political, historical, cultural and endemic nature of disputes over territory in the African continent within the discourses of public international law and international relations. It examines the manifestations of territorial, boundary and demarcation disputes across Africa based on a chapter by chapter analysis of the various sub regions on the continent.

The book analyses legal theories and state practice to develop procedures and mechanisms that will successfully detect, prevent, manage and resolve boundary problems in Africa in a manner which promotes regional integration. It synthesises the available treaty obligations, regional rules and arrangements, field data and state practice in order to set out legal and diplomatic strategies which will uniquely serve African states' decision makers, lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, political scientists and academics as a useful resource in understanding the settlement of disputes over territorial boundaries in Africa.