Abstract
The scourge of child soldiering has attracted significant international attention in the past three decades, including the production of a vast academic literature. Considerable progress has by now been made, particularly through NGO campaigning and UN policies, leading to the end of recruitment of children into the armed forces of many States. Yet, little has been achieved with respect to that same practice within the ranks of non-State armed groups (NSAGs). Most relevant scholarship has focused on examining what factors may prompt a child to join in armed struggles. Albeit essential for a better understanding of the topic analysed by this thesis, it largely fails to explain what reasons armed groups may have for recruiting and using children in armed hostilities, or refraining from doing so. Such is therefore the question that this research project attempts to answer, with a focus on the African context. Through a theoretical analysis of NSAG conduct and the key peculiarities of child soldiering, it is posited that the reasons weighing most heavily on a group’s decision depend on its intrinsic characteristics and the relationship it has with ‘its’ State, the local population, and the international community. A greater comprehension of the motivations behind an NSAG’s behaviour is crucial in order to devise the correct incentives for preventing future violations, mostly upon humanitarian dialogue with its members.