INGOs as a contributor to human security : a case study of Rwanda and South Sudan

The concept of human security, introduced in 1994, influenced the way in which politicians and scholars think of human security. It shifted the referent of security to individual level and started to consider issues related to health, environment, inequality, food and the conditions of living as potential threats. In consequence, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international organisations (IOs), working within those areas became involved in responding to security threats. The following article examines the way NGOs affect human security in Africa, taking Rwanda and South Sudan as examples and focusing on food insecurity and poverty as important risks to human security.