Winning the peace

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In a matter of days the Nigerian capital Abuja will undergo a transformation from sedate city perched high above Nigeria's central plateau to the meeting place for Africa's leaders.

Next week's African Union summit will be the first attended by President Hosni Mubarak since he survived an assassination attempt in Addis Ababa in 1995. Much has changed in the intervening decade.

A decade ago the picture was bleak. Civil wars were raging in several parts of the continent. But the determination of Africans to move forward has eased tensions.

Egypt and Sudan, for long at political loggerheads, are now closer politically than at any time in recent memory. The Sudanese government has signed a comprehensive peace deal with the Sudan People's Liberation Army, the country's largest armed opposition group. And peace talks are currently underway in the very city which hosts the AU summit between Khartoum and armed opposition groups in Darfur.

The Darfur crisis -- Africa's most intractable conflict -- is far from being resolved, though the Abuja talks have substantially narrowed the differences between the leading players. Egypt has been working with other African countries, especially Nigeria, to resolve the conflict and next week's African summit presents a golden opportunity to move further towards this goal.

Last year witnessed positive developments in many of Africa's longstanding conflicts. Peace efforts yielded dividends in Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and though tensions still simmer in the Great Lakes region peace is at last within reach.

Time is of the essence in responding effectively to post- conflict situations and many across the continent now realise winning the peace involves more than just signing agreements. Peace is prerequisite for prosperity in Africa's conflict-ridden zones.

Economic development is impossible in war-ravaged countries. The help of the international donor community is sorely needed. Experience, though, has shown that it is Africans who must first act quickly -- even over issues such as political reform that cannot be rushed -- if events are not to overtake them.