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Niagalé BAGAYOKO

Niagalé BAGAYOKO

PhD, Chair of the African Security Sector Network

Security Sector Reform,
Security, Defence
Security policies in Africa
West and Central Africa
Peacekeeping
En poste Ouverte aux opportunités
Niagalé Bagayoko is a political scientist. She has done extensive field research on security systems in African Francophone countries, Western security policies (France, United States, European Union) in Africa and African conflict-management mechanisms, focusing on the interface between security and development. She has taught at the Institut d’Etudes Politiques (Science Po) in Paris. From 2010 to 2015, she managed the “peacekeeping and peacebuilding programme” at the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF) and was a member of the Scientific Committee of the French IRSEM (Institut de recherches stratégiques de l'Ecole militaire). She is now the Chair of the African Security Sector Network (ASSN) .
    • Lead the research team (20 personnes) for the research "Etude sur les causes profondes des conflits communautaires dans l'espace du G5/Sahel" (« Deep Roots of Community-based Conflict in G5/Sahel countries »), funded by the G5/Sahel (2019);
    • Lead the programme « Security for all : Security Governance in Mali, Cameroun and Nigeria », funded by the European Union via the Friedrich Ebert Stifung (2019)
    • Lead of the OXFAM funded programme "Engaging African civil society organisations (CSO), the AU and the RECs in security sector reform and governance" in coopération with the African Union (2017-2020)
    • Support to the French Governement to write the zero-draft of the French Security Sector reform White Paper (2018).
    • Assessment of civil-military relations in Burkina Faso and assistance to the UNDP Seniro SSR officer to help the Burkina's authorities to draft their National Security Strategy (2018);
    • Study of the "Security Sector Reform Process in Mali", Research programme "Stabilizing Mali: Challenges of conflicts resolution" managed by the Université Quebec Montreal (UQAM) and funded by the Canadian Governement ( 2018)
    • Co-lead with Professor Eboe Hutchful of the programme “Engaging African civil society organisations in security sector governance at the continental and regional level”, OXFAM NOVIB, Phase I and II (November 2017-December 2020);
    • Responsible for the study “civil-military relations in Burkina Faso”, commissioned by the UNDP (march-may 2018);
    • Responsible for coordinating the draft new French interagency doctrine on Ssecurity sector reform (February 2018 – January 2019;
    • Team leader of the MOOC (Massive Online Open Course) on “Peace and Security in Francophone Africa” for the University Leopold Sedar Senghor (Alexandrai, Egypt) (July 2018-March 2019)
    • Co-lead with Professor Eboe Hutchful of the research “Security sector reform and governance in West Africa”, UNOWAS (January-March 2018)
    • Responsible for the study of the “Security Sector Reform Process in Mali”, Programme “Stabilizing Mali: Challenges of conflicts resolution” managed by the Université Quebec Montreal (UQAM) and funded by the Canadian Government (March 2017-March 2019);
    • "Transitional Justice in the Central African Republic", Programme African Comparative Transitional Justice Study, Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (June 2017-March 2018)
    • "Security Sector Reform Processes in Central Africa", Research for the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF (Summer 2017)
    • Evaluation of the United Nations Standing Advisory Committee on Security Questions in Central Africa (UNSAC) for the United Nations Regional Office for Central Africa (UNOCA) and the Department of Political Affairs (DPA) /United Nations (February-June 2017);
    • Team Leader (8 persons) of two assessments commissioned by the USAID (United States Agency for International Development) and managed by CARE International: “Conflict analysis: understanding the prevalent conflicts that affect food, nutrition and income security in Mopti region“ and “Political economy analysis for food and nutrition security and community resilience in Northern Mali” (August-January 2016);
    • Member of the SSR Joint Assessment Mission (African Union, United Nations, European Union, ECOWAS, OIF, ASSN) in Mali (November 2015) funded by the United Nations Office for Project Service (UNOPS)
    • Member of the Joint Support International Team (African Union, United Nations, European Union, ECOWAS, OIF, ASSN) to the organization of the National SSR Seminar in Madagascar (October 2015) funded by the United Nations Office for Project Service (UNOPS).
    • Co-lead with Professor Eboe Hutchful of the “Hybrid Security Orders” programme, (funded by the Canadian International Development Research Centre - IDRC) aimed to provide a more informed and realistic understanding of societal realities, often informal, within which is rooted African security and development governance ;
  • Assistance to the Delegate for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy on all issues related to peacekeeping, peacebuilding and security sector reform;
  • Coordination of the OIF advocacy strategy to mobilize OIF member-states around participation to United Nations peacekeeping operations;
  • Development of the OIF doctrine on SSR which focuses on supporting democratic governance of security systems (2010);
  • Design and implementation of the OIF's SSR training activities in francophone countries;
  • Setting up of the OIF's SSR roster (2011-2013);
  • Drafting of the OIF Strategy to support the fight against terrorism and criminality in the Sahel (2012);
  • Conception and supervision of the OIF website meant to promote francophone expertise and training resources to support peace operations (www.reffop.francophonie.org) (2013-2015);
  • Political information mission in Burundi (June 2015)
  • Field technical assessment of the security sector in Mali (2013);
  • Support to francophone peacekeeping training centres (in Roumania; Cambodia, Mali, Canada, Senegal, Benin, Cameroun, Gabon) (2010-2015);
  • Collaboration with the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations, including the SSR Unit and the Police Division to promote Francophone experts in United Nations police missions (2012-2015);
  • Field technical assessment of the security sector in the Central African Republic - CAR (2010-2011);
  • Field technical assessment of the security sector in Bissau Guinea, jointly with the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries – CPLP (2010);
    • Organization of workshops and training on SSR-related matters: medias training (Central African Republic in 2011; Côte d'Ivoire in 2012); Parliamentary oversight and control (Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin; DRC in 2010) ;
  • Organisation of workshops (in Togo, Cameroun, Benin) to generate, extend and disseminate the knowledge about the characteristics and functioning of security systems in Francophone Africa (2010 to 2013);
  • Organisation of a cycle of international conferences to promote francophone contribution to peacekeeping operations (2012-2013);
  • Support to SSR National Committees in CAR, in Mali and in Guinea (2011-2015);
  • Advocacy to promote the African Union SSR framework in Francophone African countries (2014)°;
  • Partnership with the African Union (AU) to adapt in French the African Senior Leader Management Course (2013).
  • Support to the « Privatisation of Security » and to the « Ombudsmen's' oversight on armed and security forces » programmes of the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control on Armed Forces (DCAF) (2013 - 2015);
  • co-edition (with the ASSN and the UNREC) of the book "La réforme des systèmes de sécurité et de justice en Afrique francophone »(2010).
    • Supervision of Research programmes:
  • "Security in an Africa of Networked, Multi-level Governance" (ESRC/AHRC funded programme); o “Security systems in Francophone Africa, (funded by DFID): Field research in the Central African Republic, Cameroon and Senegal.
  • “Regional security from below” (working group of the Consortium on Security Transformation along with the Institute for Strategic and Development Studies in the Philippines).
  • “The European Union security Policy in Africa”.
    • Consultancies:
  • extensive fields reports for the British DFID on the security sector in Cameroon and in the Central African Republic (2008);
  • series of outputs at both a policy and a programmatic level aimed at increasing awareness within the British and French Governments of the similarities and differences between the Anglophone and Francophone security systems (2009);
  • Support to the Team Leader of the UN Standby Team of Mediation Experts, MSU, in the provision of support to Special Representative of the UN Secretary General SRSG during the National Dialogue Process in the Central African Republic with the International Security Sector Advisory Team of DCAF (ISSAT/DCAF)
  • Assessment of the Senegalese security system for the Centre for the Democratic Control of the Armed Forces (with the DCAF);
  • Monitoring of the Security Sector Accountability and Police Reform (SSAPR) programme (DFID funded) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (2010);
  • assistance to the African Union Commission in the writing of the zero draft of the African Union (AU) Security Sector Reform Policy Framework (2010)
  • Supporting the ECOWAS Peace and Security Department in developing the Ecowas Security Sector Governance Plan of Action (2009); o Building programme aimed to develop in South Sudan the necessary foundations for enhanced delivery of support to national SSR efforts, particularly in the areas of technical guidance development, lessons learned and training (2010;
  • Organization of SSR parliamentarian trainings in Mali and Togo (2009).

Associate Fellow

, US-CREST (Centre for Research and Education on Strategy and Technology)
2006 à 2007
  • Research program: Coalition Stability Operations in West Africa.
  • Responsible for the research program: Coalition Stability Operations in Sub-saharan Africa, developed to support the US Multinational Experiment 4 (MNE4) ;
  • Workshops on conflicts prevention, management and transition in sub-Saharan Africa and participation to the US experiments and capstone exercices;
  • Consultancy for the US Department of Defense and the French Ministry of Defense.
  • Research programmes:
  • The development and security nexus
  • The European Union security policy in Africa
  • United Nations peacekeeping standards and army reform in Africa

Intern

French Ministry of Defence.
1999 à 2002
  • Compiled regular reports on French and US Security Policy towards Africa.
  • Executive study on the security mechanisms of the African regional organizations (ECOWAS; Mano river union);
  • Briefing and policy notes on the situation in troubled West African countries (Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Nigeria);
  • Policy briefings on conflicts and peace operations in West Africa;