RVI’s partner in Somaliland, the Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS) at Hargeysa University, has released two compelling new publications. These are: the latest volume of the Somaliland Peace and Development Journal; and a new report, ‘Partners or Competitors: The Struggle Between the State and Traditional Institutions in Somaliland’.
RVI has been a partner of IPCS for several years and has supported the Institute’s development through a Research Capacity Building Project funded by the Somali Stability Fund. The Somaliland Peace and Development Journal (SPDJ) was an outcome of this project. The SPDJ is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal which provides interdisciplinary articles with a focus on conflict, governance, human rights and migration in the Horn of Africa and the wider African context.
The fifth volume of the Somaliland Peace and Development Journal, published in October 2021, examines a diverse array of topics, ranging from a historical analysis of the decision to unify the newly independent Somaliland with the Trust Territory of Somalia in 1960, to an article on the challenges and opportunities of good governance in modern day Somaliland. This volume also includes an analysis of the international human rights instruments which affect migrants globally, before examining the plight of refugee children and their access to primary education in eastern Cameroon in the final article.
Partners or Competitors: The Struggle Between the State and Traditional Institutions in Somaliland examines the changing nature of traditional leaders in Somaliland, and their role in the community. The rising number of traditional leaders in communities across Somaliland are posing unprecedented challenges to the interactions between traditional and modern institutions. This study, researched by Abdikadir A. Ismail, proposes policies and strategies to address the growing number of traditional leaders, and how to manage their engagement in the state’s fragmented politics.
RVI also partners with IPCS on another project: Inclusive Urban Infrastructure. Launched in April 2020, this project aims to contribute to the inclusive provision of infrastructure to off-grid settlements in cities across Africa and Asia.
