By David Nyheim, Barnaby Briggs, and John Gatt-Rutter of International Conflict and Security Consulting Ltd. (Malta)
Eight years ago
On 16 January 2013, 32 Islamist terrorists attacked a bus transporting employees from a natural gas plant near the town of In Amenas in Algeria. Terrorist gunmen also stormed the Base de Vie (accommodation block) and attacked the Central Processing facility itself. They took hostages. The standoff between the gunmen and Algerian security forces ended on 19 January, when 11 terrorists and 7 hostages were killed in a final assault. The death toll from the incident included one Algerian and 39 foreign hostages from nine different countries.
The In Amenas attack is one of many examples of business on the frontline of terrorist insurgencies in Africa and the Middle East. Others range from solar power plants in Northeastern Nigeria and Burkina Faso, mines in Mali and Niger, oil and gas plants in Libya, Algeria, and Iraq, and a massive LNG project in Mozambique.
And each context is, of course, different. We know that from our work on security and stabilisation in the Middle East and Africa for the EU since the emergence of ISIS and other terrorist groups. We’ve seen it in our work with energy companies and the United Nations in Boko Haram affected areas in the Northeast of Nigeria. And in Mozambique, where we have spent the last four years in Cabo Delgado helping business build constructive relationships with their host communities, the context changes from one locality to another.
There is an emerging international and governmental push to address the Al Sunnah wa Jama’ah (ASWJ) terrorist insurgency in Cabo Delgado. Cabo Delgado is home to the Mozambique LNG Project, which has the potential to dramatically transform Mozambique’s economy. Our experience is that sustainable solutions and interventions in such environments must recognise the uniqueness of the place, involve business and take a human security approach. But what does it mean for companies such as Total, Mitsui & Co, and the other partners of the Mozambique LNG Project? What does it mean for international partners who are considering development and security support? And how do the Government of Mozambique and international…
