Islamic Radicalisation in North and West Africa: Drivers and approaches to tackle radicalisation (Rapid Literature Review)

Abstract

This paper synthesises literature on Islamic radicalisation in North and West Africa, with a particular focus on the drivers of radicalisation and evidence on approaches that have attempted to tackle radicalisation. There is significant debate in the academic literature concerning the definition of ‘radicalisation’. For the purposes of this report, the definition of Islamic radicalisation adopted is ‘a political rupture with the nation state in order to establish the early Islamic califat by violence’. The two main ideological perspectives relevant in the region are Jihadism, which advocates political violence; and Wahhabism, or Salafism Wahhabism, which advocate fundamentalism and non-violence