Key Contribution
Beyond conventional threats: Existing frameworks — AIMS 2050, the Lome Charter and the Yaounde Architecture — remain constrained by limited maritime domain awareness, uneven governance and inadequate resources. This paper proposes embedding technological innovation inside the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Development (PCRD) mechanisms, so that technology complements rather than substitutes for governance.
Abstract
Africa’s maritime domain sits at the intersection of security, governance and development, shaped by both entrenched traditional threats and emerging risks. This article examines the potential roles of emerging technologies to advance maritime peacebuilding, focusing on how they can help security strategies move beyond conventional threats such as illegal fishing, trafficking and insurgency.
Drawing on the peace-security-development nexus, it analyses how technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data analytics and unmanned systems can strengthen maritime governance by improving domain awareness, reinforcing law enforcement and enabling inter-regional cooperation. Beyond operational gains, these technologies can enhance state legitimacy, improve resource management and support the blue economy in vulnerable or conflict-affected coastal states. Yet adoption also carries risks — widening digital divide, cybersecurity vulnerabilities, dependence on foreign suppliers, and potential militarization of maritime governance.
Keywords: maritime peacebuilding; emerging technologies; maritime security architecture; blue economy; Africa; peace and security governance.
The Argument in Brief
From naval capability to digital security governance
The future of maritime security will no longer rest on patrol vessels alone, but on the ability to embed emerging technologies within broader systems of governance, cooperation and peacebuilding.
Illustrative Scenario — 2030
Bakassi Peninsula, 24 July 2030, 15:06. A fishing community reports unidentified vessels entering Cameroon’s EEZ with AIS disabled. Simultaneously, an autonomous surveillance drone detects trafficking movements between Cameroon, Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea. Big-data systems cross-reference satellite imagery, vessel data and regional intelligence feeds within minutes. Whether authorities can act depends not on the alert, but on institutional capacity, legal frameworks and regional cooperation to convert information into effective action.
What Technologies Enable
Domain awareness: satellites, surveillance, AI and big-data analytics for real-time vessel tracking and detection of illicit activities (UNCTAD 2023).
Law enforcement: autonomous maritime systems and digital port infrastructure reinforcing interdiction and evidence.
Cooperation: data fusion across borders — Yaounde Architecture nodes sharing the same operational picture.
Development dividend: better resource management, protection of fisheries, and enabling the blue economy where livelihoods are at stake.
Risks If Adopted Poorly
Digital divide: uneven access widens the gap between well-equipped and capacity-constrained states.
Cybersecurity: more connected systems mean a larger attack surface for maritime and port infrastructure.
Supplier dependence: reliance on foreign providers for sensors, platforms and analytics.
Militarization: surveillance tools repurposed in ways that erode trust rather than build peace — governance safeguards are essential.
Framework Proposed
A maritime peacebuilding framework
| Pillar | What Changes | Governance Condition |
|---|
| Maritime Domain Awareness | AI + big data + unmanned systems fused with satellite and vessel data for real-time tracking | Legal mandates for data sharing; protection of sources and privacy |
| Law Enforcement & Inter-regional Cooperation | Faster cross-border alerts across the Gulf of Guinea and beyond | Harmonized procedures within Yaounde Architecture; inter-agency trust |
| State Legitimacy & Resource Management | Fisheries protection, reduced IUU fishing, revenue retention | Transparent allocation of blue-economy benefits to coastal communities |
| Embedding in APSA / PCRD | Technology serves peacebuilding, not only security operations | Inclusive policy design; civilian oversight; human-security metrics |
Method: qualitative analytical approach based on secondary sources, public policy documents and academic literature. The paper examines traditional maritime security challenges, then assesses innovation pathways already tested in more technologically advanced regions.
Why It Matters for Decision-Makers
For Gulf of Guinea States
Prioritize domain-awareness infrastructure that is maintainable and sovereign — not just platform acquisition. Pair sensors with legal frameworks for evidence and prosecution.
For Regional Organisations
Use the Yaounde Architecture as the integration layer: common data standards, shared analytics, and joint response protocols that outlive any single technology vendor.
For Investors & Partners
Assess maritime governance as a compound risk: port, fisheries, energy and security exposures move together. Peacebuilding metrics are leading indicators of investability.
Publication Details
Author: Andre Hubert Onana Mfege, PhD — Former Senior Military Officer and Diplomat; Secretary General, Africa Geopolitics & Strategies; Founder, PANGEA Intelligence Inc. · Cornwall, Ontario, Canada — aonanamfege@yahoo.com
Citation: Onana Mfege, A. H. (2026). Emerging Technologies and Maritime Peacebuilding in Africa: Rethinking Security Architectures Beyond Conventional Maritime Threats. SSRN 7571915. Preprint (not peer reviewed).
Declaration: ChatGPT (OpenAI) and Claude (Anthropic) used solely for brainstorming and clarity/grammar; no AI tool generated original research content, data, analysis or citations.
Sources: AIMS 2050, Lome Charter, Yaounde Architecture; Bueger et al. 2024; Talpur et al. 2025; Pohuntu & Ermolai 2024; Rozbiewska 2025; Ogbobode et al. 2025; UNCTAD 2023; Steff 2020.
