In Transforming Libya's Ungoverned Spaces through Development , I use the assassination attempt on the Libyan PM in Sebha as a jumping off point to explain how Libya can never achieve security unless the economy is kick started. The article focuses on the Southwestern province of Fezzan and how critical it remains to larger developments in the Sahel region and Libya's coastal regions.
As political posturing surrounding the murder of US Ambassador Christopher Stevens four months ago continues to dominate news about Libya in the Western media, Libya has silently reached the crossroads. Vast swathes of the country are on the verge of becoming ungovernable, while the new democratically elected Libyan authorities are struggling to gain traction in the hinterlands and to prevent local powerbrokers from enshrining their own fiefdoms.As the focus of the current Ali Zidan government remains squarely on security - narrowly defined and implemented via old-fashioned mechanisms such as imposing military governance and co-opting militiamen with handouts - national infrastructure planning and getting the cranes moving has lagged. Yet, to achieve security, the economy must create wealth, jobs and a sense of inclusion for all of Libya's regions.The Fezzan urgently needs to be integrated into the rest of Libya via infrastructural investment, job creation, demobilisation of militias and strategic partnerships with outside universities and corporations. The current crisis represents a great opportunity. One can only hope Libya does not become yet another example in a long list of wasted opportunities and wasted revolutions.