This blog post was written by Alden Young and Naomi Pendle, the Co-Directors of Studies for the Rift Valley Institute’s Sudan and South Sudan Course, which will be taking place in Ethiopia from 24-28 June 2019. Alden and Naomi will be…
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This blog was written by Irène Bahati and is part of RVI’s Research Collaboration project in partnership with the Groupe d’Etudes sur les Conflits et la Sécurité Humaine (GEC-SH) and funded by the Knowledge Management Fund of KPSRL. The project examines the political…
Puntland’s Bari region is remote and mountainous with few roads and an increasingly distant relationship with Garowe, the state capital. The inaccessibility of the interior, where Islamists militants are active, has meant that coastal communities—more easily accessed by sea…
The Somali diaspora has been a lifeline for people in Somalia for many years, responding to major humanitarian emergencies and everyday crises. The ways in which this humanitarian response is mobilised, channelled and delivered to people in Somalia is the subject of…
The city of Goma, in North Kivu province, is home to numerous former child soldiers. After leaving armed groups that are active in rural areas, they often go to the city. This is because the communities where they used…
This blog was written by Elisée Cirhuza and is part of RVI’s Research Collaboration project in partnership with the Groupe d’Etudes sur les Conflits et la Sécurité Humaine (GEC-SH) and funded by the Knowledge Management Fund of KPSRL. The project examines the political…
The city of Uvira in South Kivu province has long been a hotbed of armed criminality. The victims of these attacks are primarily small-scale economic operators, such as shopkeepers, money changers and those selling phone credits. In this blog, Juvénal…
South Sudan’s borderland region with Sudan, in Northern Bahr el-Ghazal, is a hard place to make a living. Jobs are scarce, livelihoods insecure and movement across the border is heavily regulated. The region’s women often bear the heaviest burden as they…
In the months following the inauguration of the new provincial government of South Kivu in October 2017, the city of Bukavu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo was witnessing a series of burglaries and violent attacks. The…
This blog post was written by Michael Woldemariam and Jutta Bakonyi, the Co-Directors of Studies for the Rift Valley Institute’s Horn of Africa Course, which will be taking place in Ethiopia from 17-21 June 2019. Michael and Jutta will be joined…
Recent Publications

Minor Demarcations, Micro-Dams—Major Drama? Ethno-territorial expansionism and precarious peace in the Oromia–Somali borderlands of eastern Ethiopia
May 20, 2025
The report highlights the overlapping claims to and distributive struggles over territory and resources in the Oromia-Somali borderlands which animated inter-regional competition between the Oromia Regional State (ORS) and Somali Regional State (SRS), resulted in the brief 2023 uptick in

When Women Sing: How Murle women use arts and cultural mediums to communicate
May 16, 2025
This research explores how Murle women in the Greater Pibor area of central eastern South Sudan use not just songs but dance, hairstyles, body marks and beads to express themselves. Its objective is to draw attention to the ways Murle
Effectiveness of Women in Politics and Improving Gender Equality in South Sudan
May 2, 2025
This report argues that, in order to improve women’s participation in politics and promote gender-responsive policies in the country, there is a need to enlarge government capacity for women’s leadership by introducing equal gender quotas for decision-making positions. Summary Women’s