Security and stability in Northern Africa

The Advisory Council on International Affairs (AIV) of the Netherlands is an independent body which advises government and parliament on foreign policy, particularly on issues relating to human rights, peace and security, development cooperation and European integration.

The AIV produces advisory reports on its own initiative or at the request of government or parliament. All reports are presented to the relevant members of the government as well as to the House of Representatives and Senate. In most cases, the government members in question are the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Defence and the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation. They are expected to send a government response to parliament within three months. The requests for advice, the reports and the government responses are all made public.Today the fate of Europe is tied to that of Africa more than ever before. In this report, the AIV focuses on the countries of North Africa, the Sahel, West Africa and the Horn of Africa, and especially on Mali and Libya. It uses the term ‘Northern Africa’ to refer to this region. Joint solutions have to be found for the enormous problems the region faces.