Nygusie Kassae V.M. Ethnic conflicts and problems of their resolution in Africa in early 21th century

Abstract: The subject of the study are social and cultural (ethnic) and confessional (religious) conflicts on the African continent. Particular attention is paid to the study of positive and negative experiences of conflict resolution in the countries with federalism as a form of government structure. The author examines the particular traits of Ethiopian and Nigerian federalism. In this context, the author analyzes various mechanisms for ethnic and religious conflict resolution on the African continent - federalization in particular, as a way for optimizing culturally different population groups. Methodological basis of research is historical materialism and historicism principle. The method of historical reconstruction allowed to justify the conclusion that numerous ethnic and religious conflicts on the continent are caused by the aggravation of economic and social problems, as well as political inequality of various social layers and groups of the African population. The conclusion is that implementing different models of "ethnic federalism" on the African continent did not result in the softening of confrontations between various social and cultural, linguistic and religious communities. On the contrary, the "ethnic" basis of federal subject formation only sharpened the contradictions between the various population groups: conflicts occur either on a horizontal (ethnos vs ethnos) or vertical (ethnos vs center) levels.  

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