Where conflict exists and has broken out into armed struggle the obvious answer of force may be tempting and indeed perhaps inevitable. But the possibility of negotiation should always be tried and kept as a continuing possibility. Conflict Management Strategies should address root causes and not the symptoms. We must admit that conflicts within States in our Region have either been initiated or fuelled by other States. In the context of our discussion Governance means the orderly conduct of national affairs or the control of national conduct.
Peace means no more than the absence of war, violence or conflict.
It is a basic ingredient of progress requiring good governance in an environment where citizens enjoy a sense of well-being and have hope for the future and where human rights and the rule of law prevail. In all societies, strains arise from various causes. The most obvious is that which arises from such an uneven distribution of opportunity that sections of society feel disenfranchised and deprived of the opportunity. A government facing conflict is a government that is faced with grave problems in carrying out its duty to govern and in honouring its obligations within the international community. It is therefore right that the international community has seen it as imperative as one body to explore the issues as a means of formulating a consensus within the wider context of interventions, especially in Africa.