The 3 Guineas...Failing or Failed States?

From the assassination of Guinea-Bissau's president:

Guinea-Bissau President Joao Bernardo Vieira was assassinated in the first hours of this morning, allegedly in an attack by renegade soldiers as he fled his home. The crime happened a few hours after his long term rival, the country's army chief General Batista Tagme, was killed by a bomb blast, late on Sunday. Although the reasons are still unknnon, the crimes have sparked alarm at instability in the young West African republic...Global Voices

To this past December's coup d etat in Guinea-Conakry:

Guinea's prime minister and some 30 other ministers have submitted to the leaders of a military coup.The government officials met Capt Moussa Dadis Camara, who has declared himself Guinea's new president, at a military base in the capital, Conakry.
The rebels staged the coup on Tuesday, just hours after the death of veteran strongman President Lansana Conte...BBC

...plus in February when MEND guerrillas attacked Equatorial Guinea adding a new twist to African based non-state actors:

Men in speedboats attacked the capital, Malabo, which sits on an island off the West African coastline in the Gulf of Guinea. They struck before dawn on Tuesday and were heavily armed, the government said in a statement, but the army, using boats and a helicopter, quickly repelled the attack.-NYTimes

The common thread is that these actions all occurred in countries on the verge of becoming failing and or failed states. With largely non-existent institutions and an attendant parasitic ruling class.What are the options? Don't expect much from the largely ineffectual African Union. Should we look to a Paul Collier inspired solution of more unilateral military intervention by neighbors or something else?