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WEALTH, POVERTY, AND SUB-SAHARAN
AFRICAN CONFLICTS: CASES OF ANGOLA,
CONGO, AND SIERRA LEONE
Rita O. Koyame-Marsh
Florida Memorial University
rkoyame@hotmail.com
ABSTRACT
This paper analyses the pre-war and post-war economic conditions of three sub-Saharan African
countries that had been devastated by internal conflicts during the 1990s. The paper shows that
these countries, while rich in natural resources, are plague with low GDP per capita, higher
inflation rate, high level of poverty, and income inequality. These poor economic conditions are
considered as some of the key factors that lead to conflicts in these countries. The paper uses the
case of conflicts in Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo (Congo) and Sierra Leone to
demonstrate this trend. In addition, the paper demonstrates that revenues from the illegal trade of
natural resources by the rebel groups helped sustain wars in these countries.
INTRODUCTION
Sub-Saharan Africa has seen its shares of civil wars in the last three decades. Countries such as
Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (Congo), and Sierra Leone have had some of the
bloodiest conflicts in the world. These three countries share similar pre-conflict economic
conditions: they are some of the poorest countries in the world in spite of their rich natural
resources endowment. Indeed, higher levels of corruption and government abuse of public funds
have lead to inequality in the distribution of income and greater poverty in these countries. In fact
only a small fraction of the population, the elite running the country gets the most benefit from
these resources. There is, hence, a prevalent belief in these countries that the only way to have
access to the piece of the pie is either by being part of the governing group, which is not that
simple because of lack of democracy, or by force. The latter option is obviously the most
successful one thus, the start of conflicts and civil unrest in these countries.
Collier (1999) pointed out that when it comes to the distribution of economic resources, leaders,
even in poor countries, often compete with one another for control of the available economic
excess, small as that might be. And when the available surplus is little, as in poor countries or
where there has been terrible sprawl, competition for it can be extremely intense, and a violent
escalation might be a likely result. The violence in Liberia (1989 – 1997), the war in Sierra Leone
(1991-2002), the three-decade war in Angola (1975-2002), the cycles of brutality in Rwanda and
Burundi, and Congo’s armed conflict (1998 – 2002) are some of the many examples of this
phenomenon.
Poor pre-war economic conditions that potentially triggered rebellion and civil unrest in these
countries could only worsen during the war. Indeed, the paper shows that government spending
on social services had a sharp decline during the war compared to national defense budget, which
increased substantially. In addition, a decrease in production of key natural resources, as the
rebels seized resource rich areas, lead to more poverty and suffering for the people of these
countries. In 2001, Sierra Leone was counted last in United Nations Human development index,
ASBBS E-Journal, Volume 4, No.1, 2008 106