[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2475 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        S.2475

                       One Hundred Third Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
 the twenty-fifth day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-
                                  four


                                 An Act

  
 
  To authorize assistance to promote the peaceful resolution of 
conflicts in Africa.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION. 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``African Conflict Resolution Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
        (1) It is in the national interest of the United States to help 
    build African capability in conflict resolution. A relatively small 
    investment of assistance in promoting African conflict resolution--
            (A) would reduce the enormous human suffering which is 
        caused by wars in Africa;
            (B) would help the United States avoid huge future 
        expenditures necessitated by Somalia-like humanitarian 
        disasters; and
            (C) would reduce the need for United Nations intervention 
        as African institutions develop the ability to resolve African 
        conflicts.
        (2) Africa, to a greater extent than any other continent, is 
    afflicted by war. Africa has been marred by more than 20 major 
    civil wars since 1960. Rwanda, Somalia, Angola, Sudan, Liberia, and 
    Burundi are among those countries that have recently suffered 
    serious armed conflict.
        (3) In the last decade alone, between 2,000,000 and 4,000,000 
    Africans have died because of war. There were 5,200,000 refugees 
    and 13,100,000 displaced people in Africa in 1993.
        (4) Millions more Africans are currently at risk of war-related 
    death. Looming or ongoing conflicts in Zaire, Angola, Sudan, 
    Rwanda, and other countries threaten Africa's future.
        (5) War has caused untold economic and social damage to the 
    countries of Africa. Food production is impossible in conflict 
    areas, and famine often results. Widespread conflict has condemned 
    many of Africa's children to lives of misery and, in certain cases, 
    has threatened the existence of traditional African cultures.
        (6) Conflict and instability in Africa, particularly in large, 
    potentially rich countries such as Angola, Sudan, and Zaire, 
    deprive the global economy of resources and opportunities for trade 
    and investment. Peace in these countries could make a significant 
    contribution to global economic growth, while creating new 
    opportunities for United States businesses.
        (7) Excessive military expenditures threaten political and 
    economic stability in Africa while diverting scarce resources from 
    development needs. Demobilization and other measures to reduce the 
    size of African armies, and civilian control of the military under 
    the rule of law are in the interest of international security and 
    economic development.
        (8) Conflict prevention, mediation, and demobilization are 
    prerequisites to the success of development assistance programs. 
    Nutrition and education programs, for example, cannot succeed in a 
    nation at war. Billions of dollars of development assistance have 
    been virtually wasted in war-ravaged countries such as Liberia, 
    Somalia, and Sudan.
        (9) Africans have a long tradition of informal mediation. This 
    tradition should be built upon to create effective institutions 
    through which Africans can resolve African conflicts.
        (10) The effectiveness of U.S. support for conflict resolution 
    programs requires coordination and collaboration with multilateral 
    institutions and other bilateral donors.
        (11) African institutions are playing an active role in 
    conflict resolution and mediation utilizing the experience of elder 
    statesmen. Groups such as the All African Council of Churches have 
    assisted in defusing conflicts. The Economic Community of West 
    African States (ECOWAS) has sought to address the conflict in 
    Liberia by deploying an African peacekeeping force. The Southern 
    African states have been working to prevent a crisis in Lesotho. 
    The Intergovernmental Authority on Desertification and Drought 
    (IGADD) has been engaged in attempting to resolve the conflict in 
    Sudan.
        (12) The Organization of African Unity, under the leadership of 
    Secretary General Salim Salim, has established a conflict 
    resolution mechanism and has been active in mediation and conflict 
    resolution in several African countries.
    (b) United States Policy.--The Congress declares, therefore, that a 
key goal for United States foreign policy should be to help 
institutionalize conflict resolution capability in Africa.

SEC. 3. IMPROVING THE CONFLICT RESOLUTION CAPABILITIES OF THE 
              ORGANIZATION OF AFRICAN UNITY.

    (a) Authorization of Assistance.--The President is authorized to 
provide assistance to strengthen the conflict resolution capability of 
the Organization of African Unity, as follows:
        (1) Funds may be provided to the Organization of African Unity 
    for use in supporting its conflict resolution capability, including 
    providing technical assistance.
        (2) Funds may be used for expenses of sending individuals with 
    expertise in conflict resolution to work with the Organization of 
    African Unity.
    (b) Funding.--Of the foreign assistance funds that are allocated 
for sub-Saharan Africa, not less than $1,500,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 1995 through 1998 should be used to carry out subsection (a).

SEC. 4. IMPROVING CONFLICT RESOLUTION CAPABILITIES OF MULTILATERAL 
              SUBREGIONAL ORGANIZATIONS IN AFRICA.

    (a) Authorization of Assistance.--The President is authorized to 
provide assistance to strengthen the conflict resolution capabilities 
of subregional organizations established by countries in sub-Saharan 
Africa, as follows:
        (1) Funds may be provided to such organizations for use in 
    supporting their conflict resolution capability, including 
    providing technical assistance.
        (2) Funds may be used for the expenses of sending individuals 
    with expertise in conflict resolution to work with such 
    organizations.
    (b) Funding.--Of the foreign assistance funds that are allocated 
for sub-Saharan Africa, such sums as may be necessary for each of the 
fiscal years 1995 through 1998 may be used to carry out subsection (a).

SEC. 5. IMPROVING CONFLICT RESOLUTION CAPABILITIES OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL 
              ORGANIZATIONS.

    (a) Authorization of Assistance.--The President is authorized to 
provide assistance to nongovernmental organizations that are engaged in 
mediation and reconciliation efforts in sub-Saharan Africa.
    (b) Funding.--Of the foreign assistance funds that are allocated 
for sub-Saharan Africa, such sums as may be necessary for each of the 
fiscal years 1995 and 1996 should be used to carry out subsection (a).

SEC. 6. AFRICAN DEMOBILIZATION AND RETRAINING PROGRAM.

    (a) Authorization of Assistance.--In order to facilitate reductions 
in the size of the armed forces of countries of sub-Saharan Africa, the 
President is authorized to--
        (1) provide assistance for the encampment and related 
    activities for the purpose of demobilization of such forces; and
        (2) provide assistance for the reintegration of demobilized 
    military personnel into civilian society through activities such as 
    retraining for civilian occupations, creation of income-generating 
    opportunities, their reintegration into agricultural activities, 
    and the transportation to the home areas of such personnel.
    (b) Funding.--Of the foreign assistance funds that are allocated 
for sub-Saharan Africa, $25,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1995 
and 1996 should be used for the assistance described in subsection (a), 
if conditions permit.
    (c) Civilian Involvement.--The President is also authorized to 
promote civilian involvement in the planning and organization of 
demobilization and reintegration activities.

SEC. 7. TRAINING FOR AFRICANS IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND PEACEKEEPING.

    (a) Authorization.--The President is authorized to establish a 
program to provide education and training in conflict resolution and 
peacekeeping for civilian and military personnel of countries in sub-
Saharan Africa.
    (b) Funding.--Of the funds made available under chapter 5 of part 
II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, such sums as may be necessary 
for each of the fiscal years 1995 and 1996 should be used for the 
purposes of subsection (a).

SEC. 8. PLAN FOR UNITED STATES SUPPORT FOR CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND 
              DEMOBILIZATION IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA.

    (a) In General.--Pursuant to the provisions of sections 3 through 
7, the President should develop an integrated long-term plan, which 
incorporates local perspectives, to provide support for the enhancement 
of conflict resolution capabilities and demobilization activities in 
sub-Saharan Africa.
    (b) Contents of Plan.--Such plan should include:
        (1) The type, purpose, amount, and duration of assistance that 
    is planned to be provided to conflict resolution units in sub-
    Saharan Africa.
        (2) The type and amount of assistance that is planned to be 
    provided for the demobilization of military personnel of countries 
    of sub-Saharan Africa, including--
            (A) a list of which countries will receive such assistance 
        and an explanation of why such countries were chosen for such 
        assistance; and
            (B) a list of other countries and international 
        organizations that are providing assistance for such 
        demobilization.
        (3) The type and amount of assistance that is planned to be 
    provided to nongovernmental organizations that are engaged in 
    mediation and reconciliation efforts in sub-Saharan Africa.
        (4) A description of proposed training programs for Africans in 
    conflict resolution and peacekeeping under section 7, including a 
    list of prospective participants and plans to expand such programs.
        (5) The mechanisms to be used to coordinate interagency efforts 
    to administer the plan.
        (6) Efforts to seek the participation of other countries and 
    international organizations to achieve the objectives of the plan.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report containing a description of the plan 
developed under this section.

SEC. 9. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

    (a) Requirement.--The President shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report describing the efforts and progress 
made in carrying out the provisions of this Act.
    (b) Date of Submission.--The first report submitted under 
subsection (a) shall be submitted no later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, and shall be submitted annually 
thereafter.

SEC. 10. CONSULTATION REQUIREMENT.

    The President shall consult with the appropriate congressional 
committees prior to providing assistance under sections 3 through 7.

SEC. 11. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DEFINED.

    For purposes of this Act, the term ``appropriate congressional 
committees'' means the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee 
on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate.







                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.







                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.