For much of the second half of the twentieth century, the principle of pan-African collective security struggled to progress beyond the planning stage despite its regularly reiterated importance. This situation has clearly changed since the beginning of the twenty first century. African collective security now has a dedicated structure with tools developed specifically for the continent. However, this progress should not mask the persistent limitations in the practical application of this security by the actors, particularly at the normative level. This chapter aims to show the extent to which collective security policies in Africa, while having their own normative framework, are simultaneously prisoners of exogenous approaches that limit their ability to define a sovereign peace agenda on the continent, clearly diminishing the exercise of authentic African agency within this key sector of public policy.