Issue cover

Vol. 1 No. 1 (2026): Volume 1, Issue 1 (2026)

View Issue TOC

Norms from the Periphery? African Agency in the Construction of International Peace and Security Rulz

Abraham Kuol Nyuon
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19690086
Published: April 22, 2026

Abstract

Norms from the Periphery? African Agency in the Construction of International Peace and Security Rules examines the underestimation of African institutional agency in shaping international norms on sovereignty, intervention, accountability, and peace operations. Centering South Sudan without treating it as exceptional, the study situates the case within broader debates in constructivism, norm localization, and African agency in international relations. It develops the concept of southern norm entrepreneurship to explain how formal norms, institutional design, and struggles over authority interact in the production of international rules. Drawing on discourse analysis of AU normative instruments, including the Constitutive Act, Ezulwini Consensus, and Lomé Declaration; process tracing of African-led norm entrepreneurship episodes; interviews with AU Commission officials and African UN diplomats; and comparative analysis with ASEAN norm construction, the study advances three linked propositions. First, African regional organizations can shift norms from reactive positions to proactive proposals. Second, coalition-building and localization strategies are central to translating regional preferences into global norm debates. Third, the effectiveness of such efforts is constrained by structural inequalities within the international system. The analysis addresses the central question of how the AU has exercised norm entrepreneurship in areas such as non-indifference, the Ezulwini Consensus on the Responsibility to Protect, and positions on international criminal justice reform, and with what success in reshaping global normative frameworks. It shows that institutions, narratives, and policy processes function as political instruments rather than neutral containers. The study c

Full Text:

PDF HTML Cover Image

Read the Full Article

The HTML galley is loaded below for inline reading and better discovery.

Open HTML Open PDF

How to Cite

Abraham Kuol Nyuon (2026). Norms from the Periphery? African Agency in the Construction of International Peace and Security Rulz. African International Relations, Vol. 1 No. 1 (2026): Volume 1, Issue 1 (2026). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19690086
EndNote (RIS) BibTeX

Keywords

Norm entrepreneurshipAfrican agencyAUinternational normsR2PICCconstructivismGlobal South

Research Snapshot

Desktop reading view
Language
EN
Formats
HTML + PDF
Publication Track
Vol. 1 No. 1 (2026): Volume 1, Issue 1 (2026)
Current Journal
African International Relations

References

  • Margaret E. Keck; Kathryn Sikkink (1999). Transnational advocacy networks in international and regional politics. International Social Science Journal, 51(159), 89-101. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2451.00179
  • Margaret G. Hermann (1998). One Field, Many Perspectives: Building the Foundations for Dialogue. International Studies Quarterly, 42(4), 605-624. https://doi.org/10.1111/0020-8833.00099
  • John M. Owen (2005). When Do Ideologies Produce Alliances?. The Holy Roman Empire, 1517-1555. International Studies Quarterly, 49(1), 73-99. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0020-8833.2005.00335.x
  • Simon, Sheldon W. (2010). Whose Ideas Matter? Agency and Power in Asian Regionalism. By Amitav Acharya. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2009. 200p. $39.95.. Perspectives on Politics, 8(2), 626-627. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1537592710000502
  • Bjørn Møller (2009). THE AFRICAN UNION AS SECURITY ACTOR : AFRICAN SOLUTIONS TO AFRICAN PROBLEMS ?. London School of Economics and Political Science Research Online (London School of Economics and Political Science).
  • Lex Borghans; Angela Duckworth; James J. Heckman; Bas ter Weel (2008). The Economics and Psychology of Personality Traits. The Journal of Human Resources, 43(4), 972-1059. https://doi.org/10.1353/jhr.2008.0017
  • Harold G. Koenig (2012). Religion, Spirituality, and Health: The Research and Clinical Implications. ISRN Psychiatry, 2012, 1-33. https://doi.org/10.5402/2012/278730
  • Phillip J. Clapham; James G. Mead (1999). Megaptera novaeangliae. Mammalian Species, 1-1. https://doi.org/10.2307/3504352
  • Serugo Jean Baptiste; Balingene Kahombo (2022). Taking Stock of African Union’s Sanctions against Unconstitutional Change of Government. Recht in Afrika, 25(1), 135-178. https://doi.org/10.5771/2363-6270-2022-1-135
  • Unknown Author (2000). CONSTITUTIVE ACT OF THE AFRICAN UNION ADOPTED BY THE THIRTY-SIXTH ORDINARY SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY OF HEADS OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT 11 JULY, 2000 LOME, TOGO. African Yearbook of International Law Online / Annuaire Africain de droit international Online, 8(1), 496-499. https://doi.org/10.1163/221161700x00172
  • Ian A. Dickie; Brett M. Bennett; Larry Burrows; Martín A. Núñez; Duane A. Peltzer; Annabel J. Porté; David M. Richardson; Marcel Rejmánek; Philip W. Rundel; Brian W. van Wilgen (2013). Conflicting values: ecosystem services and invasive tree management. Biological Invasions, 16(3), 705-719. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-013-0609-6
  • Unknown Author (2013). Executive Summary. https://doi.org/10.6027/9789289329422-2-en
  • J. R. Adams; M. M. Aggarwal; Z. Ahammed; J. Amonett; B. D. Anderson; D. Arkhipkin; G. S. Averichev; S.K. Badyal; Y. Bai; J. Balewski; O. Barannikova; L. S. Barnby; J. Baudot; S. Bekele; V. V. Belaga; A. Bellingeri-Laurikainen; R. Bellwied; J. Berger; B. I. Bezverkhny; S. Bharadwaj; A. Bhasin; A. K. Bhati; V.S. Bhatia; H. Bichsel; J. Bielčík; J. Bielčíková; A. Billmeier; L. C. Bland; C. O. Blyth; B. E. Bonner; M. Botje; A. Boucham; J. Bouchet; A. V. Brandin; A. Bravar; M. Bysterský; R. V. Cadman; X. Z. Cai; H. Caines; M. Calderon De La Barca Sanchez; J. Castillo Castellanos; O. Catu; D. Cebra; Z. Chajęcki; P. Chaloupka; S. Chattopadhyay; H. F. Chen; Y. Chen; J. Cheng; M. Cherney; A. Chikanian; W. Christie; J. P. Coffin; T. M. Cormier; J. G. Cramer; H. J. Crawford; D. Das; S. Das; M. M. de Moura; T. G. Dedovich; A. A. Derevschikov; L. Didenko; T. Dietel; S. Dogra; X. Dong; X. Dong; J. E. Draper; F. Du; A. K. Dubey; V. B. Dunin; J. C. Dunlop; M. R. Dutta Mazumdar; V. Eckardt; W. R. Edwards; L. G. Efimov; В. Емелянов; J. Engelage; G. Eppley; B. Erazmus; M. Estienne; P. Fachini; J. Faivre; R. Fatemi; J. Fedorišin; K. Filimonov; P. Filip; E. Finch; V. Fine; Y. Fisyak; J. Fu; C. A. Gagliardi; L. Gaillard; J. Gans; M. S. Ganti; F. J. M. Geurts; V. Ghazikhanian; P. Ghosh; J. E. Gonzalez; H. Gos; O. Grachov (2005). Experimental and theoretical challenges in the search for the quark–gluon plasma: The STAR Collaboration's critical assessment of the evidence from RHIC collisions. Nuclear Physics A, 757(1-2), 102-183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2005.03.085
  • Christine A. Biron (2001). Interferons α and β as Immune Regulators—A New Look. Immunity, 14(6), 661-664. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1074-7613(01)00154-6