Rural banditry by all accounts is undermining security, peace, and development in Nigeria’s northwest. While the unfolding crisis could be linked to a set of factors, the threat to security in a region already reeling from the effects of a decade-long Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast cannot be over-stated.
Essays
Essays present critical analysis and debate on a pressing issue in African peacebuilding.
Peacebuilding
A Perspective on Next Generation Peacebuilding in Africa: What Next?
by Admire Mare, Toyin Ajao, Arsène Brice Bado, Fredrick Ogenga, Samaila Suleiman, Chantal Ingabire and Edmore Chitukutuku
Between April 10-12, 2019, seven alumni of two SSRC programs—the African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen)—joined some of the world’s leading thinkers, practitioners, and funders in the field of peacebuilding for a two-day high-level conference organized by Wilton Park in the United Kingdom. The theme of the meeting, […]
Democracy, Development and Governance
Nigeria’s 2019 General Elections: A Postscript
by Ukoha Ukiwo
The expectation of free and fair elections was dampened by the perception among some observers of bias by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), whose neutrality had been a key factor in the success of the 2015 elections.
Media
Empowering Kenyan Voices in Peacebuilding Discourse Through Talk Radio
by Joyce Omwoha
There can be no peace without development and no development without peace. Report of the UN Secretary-General, September 2013 As the media strives to uphold freedom, independence, and professionalism in a digitalized media environment, the world comes together on February 13 every year to mark World Radio Day. On this day, we celebrate the unique […]
Democracy, Development and Governance
2019 Presidential Elections in Senegal: Reflections on a West African Model-Democracy and the Challenge of Decolonization
by Amy Niang and Aboubakr Tandia
Perhaps the most defining issue of the election was the debate about decolonization, a first in the history of postcolonial Senegal.
Peacebuilding
The Waning Foreign Policy Influence of Tanzania under President Magufuli
by Nicodemus Minde
Tanzania’s post-independence foreign policy was modeled on “liberation diplomacy.” As a result, the country and its leadership have played a critical role in regional and continental affairs.
Democracy, Development and Governance
Ethiopia’s Political Transition at a Crossroads
by Asebe Regassa Debelo
Authorities should adopt a participatory and transparent approach in demarcating the boundary between Oromia and Addis Ababa, and in renegotiating relations between the regions and the political center within the country’s federal framework.
Gender
Renegotiating Gender during Fieldwork in Conflict-Affected Settings: Overcoming Some Challenges
by Abosede Omowumi Babatunde
Despite the ethical challenges that conflict settings pose, conducting fieldwork in such places provides great opportunities to generate data essential for designing post-conflict peacebuilding activities.
Policy and Practice
In Memoriam: Professor Pius Adesanmi
by Temitope Oriola
He was a thorn in the flesh of Africa’s political class, especially the Nigerian political elite. Everyone who knew him was struck by his decency, humor, intellect, and capacity to connect with others.
Gender
Understanding Selfhood among Young People Who Were Born Out of Genocide Rape in Rwanda
by Sela Muyoka Musundi
One Saturday afternoon in 2013, I was at home in Kigali, Rwanda watching television when I randomly came across a documentary by filmmaker Ingeborg Beugel on Al Jazeera English. The film, titled “Rwanda: Children of Bad Memories,” was a poignant and moving story about a 12-year-old Rwandan boy named Shyaka. Shyaka’s mother, Goretti, was gang-raped […]