Philosophical Discourse on Human Security Re-Conceptualization of the New Security Paradigm in Africa

State security, the orthodox security model, has been the dominant security paradigm in the discussion of security of the world. However, this traditional security model is an exclusive security paradigm that neglects the protection of human beings from the non-military threats like poverty, political marginalization, environmental degradations and other threats. This book, therefore, provides the need of the paradigm shift from securing the object (state) to securing the subject (individual human). The idea of the paradigm shift is derived from Protagoras' famous adage "Man is the measure of everything'. Based on this ancient idea, human security, the inclusive new security model, is analyzed through four interrelated philosophical thoughts, such as contractualism, exestansialism, philosophical humanism, and communtiarianism. These philosophical analyses should help to bring ideological shift regarding security, and should be especially useful to professional philosophers to come close to human security issues from philosophical point of view and to policy makers in Africa.