The Lone Archivist Like many of his generation, Becu Thomas fled southern Sudan as a teenager in the 1990s. He grew up in a refugee camp in Uganda, then returned home in 2005 and got a job with the…
News
SEARCH
NEWS TYPES
REGION
Tahriib is an Arabic word that has gained prominence and popularity in the Somali language. In current parlance, young Somalis are said to be “going on tahriib” when they embark on the hazardous journey to Europe via the Sahara…
The August 2015 peace agreement in South Sudan is in mortal danger. RVI senior researcher Aly Verjee argues in the East African that the collapse of the process will destabilise South Sudan further, with untold consequences for neighbouring states….
The RVI scholarship fund is relaunched this month as the RVI Shading Tree Fund. This follows a generous donation from the family of Ranald Boyle, a former District Commissioner in South Sudan. Since the Institute was founded, the scholarship…
This blog post first appeared on the Mipakani Project website (www.mipakani.net). The Mipakani Project is an open-access knowledge base covering development initiatives in the border areas of eastern Africa. It was written by Liz Mahiri. Liz is a Programme…
The RVI Board of Trustees announced today that the Executive Director of the Rift Valley Institute, John Ryle, will step down at the end of 2016 after fifteen years as head of the organisation. The trustees have appointed Mark Bradbury—currently RVI Horn of Africa and…
RVI senior researcher Aly Verjee discusses the economics of elections in Somaliland, electoral delays and drought. Early warning from Somaliland The experience of Somaliland already provides such evidence, and a warning. In collaboration with Adan Y. Abokor, Haroon A. Yusuf,…
The prospect of devolved county government has been met with particular enthusiasm in Kenya’s former Coast province since the passage of the new constitution in 2010. Many see devolution as offering a panacea for decades of the Coast’s perceived…
The following commentary was published on IRIN commentary and was signed by 10 leading academics and humanitarian professionals, including RVI Fellow Nisar Majid and associate Abdullahi Khalif. Six years after a famine killed a quarter of a million people in…
This article was written by RVI Fellow Aly Verjee. On 23 March, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, speaking to the United Nations Security Council, declared: “There can be no real dialogue for as long as South Sudan is ravaged…
Recent Publications
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,
Rethinking Aid in Sudan and South Sudan
January 28, 2026
The brief draws on a joint convening held in Kampala, Uganda, in November 2025, which brought together more than 45 Sudanese and South Sudanese participants representing more than 30 grassroots organizations and international NGOs. Its primary objective is to amplify
EWNET Writes: Writing Workshop Session I
December 18, 2025
The Ethiopian Women Researchers Network (EWNET) inaugural writing workshop series aims to not only provide women researchers with uninterrupted time for their scholarly projects, but also build a supportive academic community. The first session, entitled ‘EWNET Writes: Writing Workshop Session