A More Strategic U.S. Approach to Police Reform in Africa

The Africa Program seeks to highlight the urgent need for police reform in Africa and provide solutions for more capable, accountable, and professional African police forces.

The CSIS Africa Program recognizes that capable police forces are a crucial prerequisite for sustained economic growth, democratic development, and security for all African citizens. Threats such as narcotics trafficking, urban crime, and resource theft all rely on capable police services, yet many have been either ignored or assigned exclusively to military forces, leaving African police forces ill-equipped, poorly trained, corrupt, and even predatory. The CSIS Africa Program recently concluded a one year study to examine current U.S. efforts to strengthen African police forces. The project engaged current policymakers and practitioners from all branches of the U.S. Government, as well as African experts. The aim of the project is to build support for a more robust and targeted U.S. assistance strategy for police forces in Africa. The project's final report was published in April 2011.