TY - BOOK ID - 138703917 TI - Trafficking and Fragility in West Africa PY - 2014 PB - Washington, D.C., The World Bank, DB - UniCat KW - Conflict and Development KW - Crime and Society KW - Criminal Networks KW - Fragility KW - Governance KW - Governance Indicators KW - Human Rights KW - Illicit Goods KW - Institutional Weaknesses KW - Law and Development KW - Post Conflict Reconstruction KW - Public Sector Development KW - Social Development KW - Trafficking UR - https://www.unicat.be/uniCat?func=search&query=sysid:138703917 AB - Trafficking is an emerging concern in West Africa. In 2011, 17 percent of all cocaine consumed in Europe-21 tons-passed through the region, for a retail value of USD 1.7 billion. This paper discusses the evolution of trafficking in the region and provides estimates of the size and value of trafficking flows to demonstrate the significance of this illegal activity. Although this topic is gaining increasing attention, less attention has been has been paid to how trafficking is perpetuating fragility. This paper contributes to this area of research by identifying five channels through which trafficking is intensifying fragility in the region. The relative importance of each channel is discussed, with specific countries as case-study examples. Possible programmatic responses are then suggested with examples of policy approaches successfully adopted elsewhere in the world. ER -