2-5 JUNE 2025 THEME: CRISES NEW AND OLD? CONFLICT, CLIMATE AND GOVERNANCE IN THE GREAT LAKES Led by Jason Kayani Stearns The Great Lakes region of Africa faces its most severe political crisis in more than twenty years. The…
Education and Training
Watch the trailer above to learn more about RVI’s field courses.
RVI Courses
RVI’s field-based education and training courses aim to inform key constituencies working in eastern and central Africa about the people and communities in the countries where they work. The education programme includes the Annual Field Courses on Sudan and South Sudan, the Horn of Africa, and the Great Lakes, and bespoke courses tailored for a variety of international organizations.
RVI’s first field course took place in 2004 in Kenya. Since then, the three annual courses have taken place in Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, southern Sudan and Uganda, while bespoke courses have taken place in more than 15 countries in Africa and in the UK.
RVI courses are tailored to the needs of the organizations who participate and are taught be leading experts and practitioners in the fields of political science, economics, anthropology, history, security, development, humanitarianism, policymaking, media and activism. RVI courses utilize multiple teaching formats including lectures, panel discussion, working groups, interviews and video presentations.
Researcher Training
RVI is also committed to working with researchers from eastern and central Africa to develop skills, experience, and provide mentorship as participants pursue careers in the research sector. While researchers from east and central Africa play a central role in all RVI research projects, often authoring or co-authoring reports and papers, the Institute currently manages two projects that are specifically aimed at provided training for researchers from the region. The projects are the Research Communities of Practice project (RCoP), supported by the Carnegie Corporation; and the South Sudan Women’s Research Network (SSWRN), funded by the European Union in South Sudan. To find out more about these projects please visit RVI’s projects page.
More information on our courses and researcher training opportunities can be found below:
REGION
SEARCH
The Rift Valley Institute (RVI) is pleased to announce that applications are open for our 2025 annual field courses on the Horn of Africa, Sudan and South Sudan, and the Great Lakes. The RVI annual residential field courses, running since 2004, are taught by leading academics, researchers…
19-21 June 2024 Theme: Crises new and old? Conflict, climate and governance in the Great Lakes The Great Lakes region faces its most severe political crisis in over twenty years. While the UN peacekeeping mission withdraws from the DRC,…
This Q&A provides an overview of the topics to be covered during our Annual 2024 Great Lakes Course. This includes the political crisis in the Great Lakes region which focuses on conflict dynamics, governance issues, security sector reform, gender…
Applications are open for our annual field courses. This year our three courses on the Great Lakes, the Horn of Africa, and Sudan and South Sudan will be held at a tranquil location in Kilifi in Kenya. Our three-day residential courses offer critical…
In September 2022, the Rift Valley Institute in collaboration with Carnegie Corporation and the Open Society University Network launched the first cohort of the Early Career Researchers’ Training, part of the RVI’s Research Community of Practice (RCoP) project. The project…
This blog post was written by Yolande Bouka and Marco Jowell, the Co-Directors of Studies for the Rift Valley Institute’s Great Lakes Field Course, which will be taking place in Ethiopia from 3-7 June 2019. Yolande and Marco will be joined…
The Rift Valley Institute’s three field courses offer a unique opportunity to spend an intensive week with an outstanding group of experts and fellow participants, away from routine distractions. Held annually in the summer, the courses are taught by teams of…
Recent Publications
Civil Society Organizations and Peacebuilding in Ethiopia
March 20, 2025
Civil Society Organizations and Peacebuilding in Ethiopia This paper examines the roles of civil society organizations (CSOs) in Ethiopian peacebuilding, exploring change and continuity within the sector and how past events influence their activities. It discusses CSOs’ involvement in peace
XCEPT Local Research Legacy: Sharing the experiences of women amid agricultural transitions in the borderlands
March 19, 2025
I became involved in the Cross-border Conflict Evidence, Policy, and Trends (XCEPT) programme’s Local Research Network (LRN) at its inception in 2018. During the following years, the network introduced me to a wider community of researchers who share a similar interest
XCEPT Local Research Legacy: How collaborative research and mentorship approaches have shaped my research capacity and interest
March 19, 2025
I was first invited to join the Cross-border Conflict Evidence, Policy, and Trends (XCEPT) programme in 2019, having previously worked with the Rift Valley Institute (RVI) on research in South Sudan. This innovative project brought together international experts and early career researchers