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Coup Belt

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Coup Belt
Geopolitical region of Africa
African countries that have had successful coups between 2020 and 2023
African countries that have had successful coups between 2020 and 2023
ContinentAfrica
CountriesSahel and West Africa, mainly:

The Coup Belt (French: la ceinture de coups d’État[1]) is a modern geopolitical neologism to describe the region of West Africa and the Sahel that has a high prevalence of coups d'état.[2][3][4][5]

Overview

The number of successful coups d'état in postcolonial Africa (As of 1 August 2023).[6] A successful coup occured in Gabon on 30 August 2023.

Origin

Although likely older,[7][8] the term has become newly popular after a string of coups in the early 2020s, including in Mali[9] in 2020 and 2021, Guinea,[10] Chad,[11] and Sudan[12] in 2021, two in Burkina Faso in January[13] and September[14] in 2022, and in Niger and Gabon in 2023.[15][16] The region also saw attempted coups in Niger and Sudan in 2021, Guinea–Bissau and The Gambia in 2022, and Sudan and Sierra Leone in 2023.

After the 2023 Nigerien coup, these countries formed a continuous chain stretching between the east and west coasts of Africa.[11]

History

Since 1990, 78% of the 27 coups in sub-Saharan Africa have taken place in former French colonies. This has led some to question whether French influence in Africa has a destabilising impact.[17]

The military juntas of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger cancelled military agreements that allowed for French troops to operate on their territory, and in the case of Mali, removed French as an official language.[18][19][20]

Niger was meant to host the French troops removed from Mali and Burkina Faso[21] but the 2023 Nigerien crisis and cancellation of military ties with France has complicated this arrangement.[22][23]

ECOWAS has tried to actively work on changing this label that is associated with the region, although unsuccessfully; they suspended Mali after their coup in 2021,[24] and also suspended Guinea on 8 September 2021, shortly after a military coup took place in the country.[25][26]

The coups have been similar in nature; most came from dissatisfied militaries who criticised their respective government’s handling of Islamic insurgents or protests. The incoming juntas also tend to have worse relations with the West, with many seeking support from either Russia and the Wagner Group or Turkey instead of France, who helped the countries fight against Islamic insurgents through Operation Barkhane.

Summary of coups d'état in West Africa and the Sahel region

Date Country Event Head of state
or government 		Coup leader(s) Outcome
13 January 1963  Dahomey 1963 Dahomeyan coup d'état Christophe Soglo Hubert Maga Coup successful
28 October 1963  Togo 1963 Togolese coup d'état Sylvanus Olympio
Coup successful
3 December 1963  Niger 1963 Nigerian coup d'état attempt Hamani Diori Hassan A. Diallo Coup failure
3 January 1966  Upper Volta 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état Maurice Yaméogo Sangoulé Lamizana Coup successful
16 January 1966  Nigeria 1966 Nigerian coup d'état Nnamdi Azikiwe Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu Coup failure
24 February 1966  Ghana 1966 Ghanaian coup d'état Kwame Nkrumah Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka Coup successful
28 July 1966  Nigeria 1966 Nigerian counter-coup Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi Yakubu Gowon Coup successful
21 March 1967  Sierra Leone First 1967 Sierra Leone coup d'état Siaka Stevens David Lansana Coup successful
23 March 1967  Sierra Leone Second 1967 Sierra Leone coup d'état David Lansana Andrew Juxon-Smith Coup successful
18 November 1968  Mali 1968 Malian coup d'état Modibo Keïta Moussa Traoré Coup successful
15 April 1974  Niger 1974 Nigerien coup d'état Hamani Diori Seyni Kountché Coup successful
25 November 1980  Upper Volta 1980 Upper Volta coup d'état Sangoulé Lamizana Saye Zerbo Coup successful
7 November 1982  Upper Volta 1982 Upper Voltan coup d'état Say Zerbo Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo Coup successful
28 February 1983  Upper Volta 1983 Upper Voltan coup d'état attempt Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo Saye Zerbo Coup failure
4 August 1983  Upper Volta 1983 Upper Voltan coup d'état Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo Thomas Sankara Coup successful
3 April 1984  Guinea 1984 Guinean coup d'état Louis Lansana Beavogui Lansana Conté Coup successful
23 March 1987  Sierra Leone 1987 Sierra Leonean coup d'état attempt Joseph Saidu Momoh Francis Minah Coup failure
15 October 1987 Burkina Faso Burkina Faso 1987 Burkina Faso coup d'état Thomas Sankara Blaise Compaoré Coup successful
3 December 1990  Chad 1990 Chadian coup d'état Hissène Habré Idriss Déby Coup successful
26 March 1991  Mali 1991 Malian coup d'état Moussa Traoré Amadou Toumani Touré Coup successful
29 April 1992  Sierra Leone 1992 Sierra Leonean coup d'état Joseph Saidu Momoh Valentine Strasser Coup successful
27 January 1996  Niger 1996 Nigerien coup d'état Mahamane Ousmane Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara Coup successful
9 April 1999  Niger 1999 Nigerien coup d'état Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara Daouda Malam Wanké Coup successful
7 October 2003  Burkina Faso 2003 Burkina Faso coup d'état attempt Blaise Compaoré Coup failure
5 February 2005  Togo 2005 Togolese coup d'état Fambaré Ouattara Natchaba
Coup successful
23 December 2008  Guinea 2008 Guinean coup d'état Aboubacar Somparé Moussa Dadis Camara Coup successful
18 February 2010  Niger 2010 Nigerien coup d'état Mamadou Tandja Salou Djibo Coup successful
16 July 2011  Niger 2011 Nigerien coup d'état attempt Mahamadou Issoufou Coup failure
21 March 2012  Mali 2012 Malian coup d'état Amadou Toumani Touré Amadou Sanogo Coup successful
3 November 2014  Burkina Faso 2014 Burkina Faso uprising Blaise Compaoré
Uprising successful
16 September 2015  Burkina Faso 2015 Burkina Faso coup d'état attempt Michel Kafando Gilbert Diendéré Coup failure
11 April 2019  Sudan 2019 Sudanese coup d'état Omar al-Bashir
Coup successful
18 August 2020  Mali 2020 Malian coup d'état Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta
Coup successful
31 March 2021  Niger 2021 Nigerien coup d'état attempt Mohamed Bazoum Sani Saley Gourouza Coup failure
20 April 2021  Chad Death of Idriss Déby Idriss Déby Mahamat Déby Regarded as a coup by regional opposition
24 May 2021  Mali 2021 Malian coup d'état Bah Ndaw Assimi Goïta Coup successful
5 September 2021  Guinea 2021 Guinean coup d'état Alpha Condé Mamady Doumbouya Coup successful
25 October 2021  Sudan 2021 Sudan coup d'état Abdalla Hamdok
Coup successful
23 January 2022  Burkina Faso January 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état Roch Marc Christian Kaboré Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba Coup successful
30 September 2022  Burkina Faso September 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba Ibrahim Traoré Coup successful
15 April 2023  Sudan 2023 Sudan conflict Abdel Fattah al-Burhan Hemedti Inconclusive; led to civil conflict
26 July 2023  Niger 2023 Nigerien coup d'état Mohamed Bazoum
Coup successful
31 July 2023  Sierra Leone 2023 Sierra Leone coup attempt Julius Maada Bio Coup failure
30 August 2023  Gabon 2023 Gabonese coup d'état Ali Bongo Ondimba Brice Oligui Coup successful

References

  1. ^ Guibal, Claude (15 August 2023). "Niger : en Afrique, la ceinture des coups d'État redessine la carte du continent". France Info. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  2. ^ Mekki Elmograbi (7 September 2021). "Guinea Joins the African Club of the "Coup Belt"". BL News.
  3. ^ Suleiman, Muhammad Dan (24 September 2021). "Towards a Better Understanding of the Underlying Conditions of Coups in Africa".
  4. ^ "Africa's 'coup belt' facing further upheaval". Arab News. 2 February 2022.
  5. ^ Onuah, Felix (5 December 2022). "West African leaders plan peacekeeping force to counter 'coup belt' reputation" – via www.reuters.com.
  6. ^ Duzor, Megan; Williamson, Brian (2 February 2022). "By the Numbers: Coups in Africa". Voice of America. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  7. ^ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/27/explainer-niger-a-linchpin-for-stability-in-africas-coup-belt
  8. ^ https://www.bangordailynews.com/2022/02/07/opinion/opinion-contributor/the-return-of-africas-military-coup-belt/
  9. ^ "After Two Coups, Mali Needs Regional Support to Bolster Democracy". United States Institute of Peace. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  10. ^ "Why a coup in Guinea was felt around the world". CNBC. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  11. ^ a b Walsh, Declan (29 July 2023). "Coast to Coast, a Corridor of Coups Brings Turmoil in Africa". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  12. ^ "Sudan's Coup: One Year Later". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  13. ^ "A timeline of the coup in Burkina Faso since January 2022". The Hindu. 3 October 2022. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  14. ^ "Burkina Faso's coup and political situation: All you need to know". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  15. ^ "Niger's Bazoum 'held by guards' in apparent coup attempt". Al Jazeera. 26 July 2023. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  16. ^ Dixon (g_dixon), Gary (30 August 2023). "Gabon closes shipping down after post-election coup". TradeWinds | Latest shipping and maritime news. Archived from the original on 30 August 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
  17. ^ "Is France to blame for coups in West Africa?". BBC News. 6 August 2023. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  18. ^ Ndiaga, Thiam (20 February 2023). "Burkina Faso marks official end of French military operations on its soil". Reuters. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  19. ^ "Last French troops leave Mali, ending nine-year deployment". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  20. ^ Avi-Yonah, Shera (4 August 2023). "Mali demotes French, language of its former colonizer, in symbolic move". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  21. ^ "Africanews | French forces make Niger new home after being expelled by Mali". Africanews. 5 July 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  22. ^ "Africanews | French forces make Niger new home after being expelled by Mali". Africanews. 5 July 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  23. ^ "Niger junta revokes military pacts with France". POLITICO. 4 August 2023. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  24. ^ "ECOWAS suspends Mali over second coup in nine months". Al Jazeera. 31 May 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
  25. ^ Samb, Saliou; Eboh, Camillus; Inveen, Cooper (9 September 2021). Heritage, Timothy; Orlofsky, Steve; Pullin, Richard (eds.). "West African leaders due in Guinea as post-coup calm pervades Conakry". Reuters. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  26. ^ "West African leaders suspend Guinea from Ecowas following coup," September 9, 2021, BBC News, retrieved September 9, 2021
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