Foyer de conflits et d’activités de groupes armés, la Plaine de la Ruzizi, dans la province du Sud Kivu, connait de fortes tensions entre leaders Bafuliiru et Barundi, surtout après l’assassinat du Mwami (chef coutumier) de la communauté Barundi…
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On 10 May 2013, Teso Ntarubibi, the village chief of Chifunzi, located in Kalonge groupement (in Kalehe territory, South Kivu province) was assassinated. The murder plunged Kalonge into a severe crisis and promoted the mobilization of armed groups, yet those who…
In January 2015, the Congolese army launched the Sokola II operations against the Rwandan rebel group FDLR. In this blog, Juvénal Twaibu discusses the effects of these operations in the southern part of South Kivu—Fizi, Uvira and Mwenga territories. Sustaining…
The eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is home to dozens of armed groups. Studying these groups and the way they affect local governance and conflict dynamics is challenging. How can we gather reliable data on these groups? And…
In this blog, Claude Iguma analyses the rumours and events surrounding an attack by an armed group on the gold mining site of Misisi in Fizi, South Kivu. These rumours, resulting from uncertainties about the perpetrators and their motives,…
Due to operational reasons beyond RVI’s control, this year’s annual Field Courses will now be held in Entebbe, Uganda rather than Ethiopia. Entebbe was the location of the first Great Lakes Course in 2010. RVI is excited to be…
Ce blog analyse les raisons pour lesquelles certains politiciens se donnent à s’ingérer dans les conflits autour du pouvoir coutumier, un phénomène en recrudescence dans les deux provinces du Kivu. Il soutient que les chefs coutumiers ne doivent pas…
Tafari Wossen, an Ethiopian journalist and former civil servant, is the founding editor of the Seven-Day Update, a weekly news review published in Addis Ababa. This memoir of his childhood in the province of Waag was presented at the…
Tafari Wossen, one of the founding Fellows of the Rift Valley Institute, died in Washington DC in June 2016, at the age of 76, after a long illness. A former civil servant, he was a veteran of the Ethiopian…
JUBA, South Sudan — Fighting between competing factions of South Sudan’s government in its capital left the world’s youngest country teetering on Saturday, the fifth anniversary of its independence. The government reported dozens of casualties, and there were unconfirmed…
Recent Publications
Political Economy of Cash and Markets in Sudan
February 27, 2026
The research provides a snapshot of the war in Sudan in the period from February to April 2025. However, the war is dynamic, with political alliances and territorial control changing. The April 2023 conflict between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF)
Rethinking Ethiopia II: Youth and politics
February 26, 2026
Seminar report Rethinking Ethiopia, a collaborative essay competition initiative between Addis Ababa University’s Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS) and the Rift Valley Institute’s (RVI) Peace Research Facility (PRF), offers a platform for Ethiopian youth to express their ideas
2025 Year in Review
February 16, 2026
The 2025 Year in Review provides an overview of the Rift Valley Institute’s work over the past year across eastern and central Africa. The report highlights RVI’s research and publication outputs, education and training activities, and public forums and convenings,