On 3 September 2025, the University of the Free State (UFS), in collaboration with the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), hosted a virtual webinar titled The Challenge of Terrorism in Africa and South Asia. The event brought together experts and policymakers to discuss the evolving nature of terrorism and the shared security challenges facing these regions.
Opening and welcoming remarks
Dr Arvind Gupta, Director of VIF, opened the session by emphasising the enduring importance of dialogue in confronting asymmetric security threats. He underlined the role of research and cross-regional partnerships in shaping informed counter-terrorism strategies. He was joined by Prof Mogomme Alpheus Masoga, Dean of the Faculty of The Humanities at the UFS, who welcomed participants and highlighted the university’s commitment to interdisciplinary enquiry and knowledge exchange.
Key interventions and insights
Ambassador Prabhat Kumar,
High Commissioner of India to South Africa, spoke about the geopolitical forces shaping terrorism across Africa and South Asia. He highlighted the interconnected nature of these threats and called for enhanced intelligence sharing, stronger institutional coordination, and joint capacity building.
A major highlight came from
Prof Hussein Solomon, Senior Professor in the UFS
Centre for Gender and Africa Studies, who presented a paper on the expansion of the Islamic State (IS) in Africa. He detailed how IS has entrenched itself through eight official provinces, ranging from West Africa and the Sahel to Mozambique, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Prof Solomon explained how IS exploits existing conflict dynamics such as tribal rivalries in Libya, security vacuums in the DRC, and political instability in the Sahel to gain footholds. He noted that IS affiliates benefit from both ideological guidance and operational support from IS-Central, including communication upgrades, tactical training, and limited financial resources. Drawing on examples from the Sambisa Forest in Nigeria, he illustrated how IS trainers shifted local fighters from suicidal mass charges to more coordinated guerrilla warfare.
Equally concerning, Prof Solomon revealed how terrorist financing networks link Africa to global jihadist movements. He cited cases of massive illicit transfers, such as R6,3 billion ($342 million) wired from South Africa to multiple countries between 2020 and 2021 using 57 000 unregistered SIM cards – with funds ultimately reaching IS affiliates in Somalia, Mozambique, and the DRC. This, he stressed, exposes significant law-enforcement and governance gaps in South Africa itself.
Sudhir Saxena, Senior Fellow at VIF, expanded on the financing theme, pointing to the sophistication of illicit financial networks and the urgent need for harmonised regulatory responses. Gen Eeben Barlow, Eeben Barlow, CEO of Executive Outcomes, provided practical insights into countering non-state armed actors, drawing from his field experiences. He emphasised proactive deterrence, rapid response capacity, and disrupting conflict economies. Ruchita Beri, also a Senior Fellow at VIF, closed the formal presentations by outlining policy imperatives, including education, economic inclusion, and de-radicalisation initiatives to reduce the allure of extremist ideologies.
Panel reflections and collaboration imperative
Throughout the webinar, speakers stressed that terrorism in Africa and South Asia cannot be tackled in isolation. Instead, the conversation consistently returned to the need for regional cooperation, intelligence integration, and resource sharing to disrupt terror financing and mitigate recruitment.