The courage, strength, persistence, and absolute commitment of the APN team and its leadership have succeeded in touching and transforming the lives of a vast number of African scholars on the continent.
Essays
Essays present critical analysis and debate on a pressing issue in African peacebuilding.
APN@10
A Voice from Sudan: War Is Good for Nothing
by Fatma Osman Ibnouf
The APN’s 10thanniversary presents an opportunity to review the past and also look forward with hope towards a brighter future. The APN is in a unique position to promote peace-related research collaboration among African academic, research, and policy institutions.
APN@10
My Exciting Research Journey with the APN
by Kenneth Omeje
The APN has been a major part of my exciting intellectual journey, especially in the last decade. The narrative of my initial contact and progressive engagements with the APN can be best explained within the changing dynamics of my research interests as a policy-engaged scholar.
APN@10
Editorial: APN@10 Anniversary Essay Series
by African Peacebuilding Network
About the Series As one of the activities marking the 10th anniversary of the Social Science Research Council’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN), the program is launching the “APN@10” essay series on Kujenga Amani. The series offers a platform for invited fellows and alumni to share their personal experiences and reflections on how APN awards and activities have impacted their professional careers and lives. It […]
Essays
Reintegration Challenges in the Post-2015 Amnesty Program for Former Foreign Fighters in Coastal Kenya
by John Mwangi Githigaro
This essay reflects on the reintegration challenges in the implementation of the post-2015 amnesty program for returning foreign Al-Shabaab fighters (hereafter returnees) in Coastal Kenya. Based on insights from fieldwork in Mombasa and Kwale Counties, it argues that reintegration is hampered by three key factors: trust deficits, community acceptance, and policy lacunas.
Mediation & Reconciliation
Prospects of using Theatre for Development (TfD) as a tool for resolving Farmers-Pastoralist conflict in Kilosa, Tanzania
by Julieth T. Kabyemela
This essay establishes that TfD has immense potential in mediating and resolving farmer-pastoralist conflicts as it has the power to empower community members to reflect more on their conflicts and address conflicts through community members' proposed means.
Nigeria
Language, Conflict Mitigation and Mediation Processes in Kaduna State, Nigeria
by Hauwa Mohammed Sani
Conflict is part of human everyday existence. Occasionally, conflict may become confrontational and culminate in physical violence. The approach to conflict in the essay is framed within the context of poor communication between certain groups and actors in society.
Democracy, Development and Governance
Anticipating the new awful: Covid-19 and South Africa’s fragile peace
by Gideon van Riet
The coronavirus and lockdown measures have had a crippling effect on the South African economy and her people. The pandemic exacerbated pre-existing conditions of economic hardship and marginalization in South Africa in many ways.