Dr. Chris Fomunyoh and his team had a busy week last week. NDI’s Regional Director for Central and West Africa had been invited by both the Senate and the House to testify about how the United States can better incorporate democracy strengthening activities in its counterterrorism assistance.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), chaired by Senator Bob Corker, held a hearing titled “Terrorism and Instability in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Good Governance Imperative” on May 10 and the House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC), chaired by Congressman Ed Royce, held “The U.S. Role in Helping Nigeria Confront Boko Haram and Other Threats in Northern Nigeria” before its Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations on May 11. Subcommittee Chairman Chris Smith and ranking member Karen Bass presided over the House hearing.

In his opening remarks to the SFRC, Dr. Fomunyoh laid out the current situation in sub-Saharan Africa:

“Terrorist activity in sub-Saharan Africa over the past decade threatens to destabilize the continent and roll back some of the gains in broadening political space and participation since the global wave of democratization that began in the 1990s. Groups such as Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria and the Lake Chad basin, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI) in northern Mali and the Sahel, and Al-Shabaab in Somalia and the Horn of Africa have caused tens of thousands of deaths and tremendous economic and social dislocations of civilian populations. Some of these extremist organizations operating in Africa are eager to establish alliances with violent extremist organizations in other parts of the world, notably Al Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The international community is right in supporting counterterrorism efforts that seek to defeat these extremist groups militarily and must, at the same time, assist the affected countries to address the root causes and triggers of the rise in extremism and violence on the continent.”

Autocratic regimes and weak governments which “fail to deliver public services, combat corruption and protect rights and freedoms” make for a disenfranchised and disconnected citizenry, vulnerable to recruitment by extremists. For more than 30 years, NDI has been working in Africa and around the world to eliminate these spaces by promoting good governance and working with citizens to hold their elected officials accountable and keep their elections free, fair and credible.

Senators and Representatives present at the hearings made encouraging comments, indicating their own strong support for democracy in Africa. For example, Senator Chris Coons reflected on the priorities of Congress: “We are underfunding democracy and governance dramatically,” he said, which “send[s] the wrong message.” In order to best combat and prevent the spread of violence extremism, many in Congress believe that the U.S. must make a commitment to further fund these values.

Read Dr. Fomunyoh’s full SFRC testimony and HFAC testimony, which include his specific recommendations to the U.S. government.