Historically the production of knowledge reflects a history of unequal power relations and the economic domination of the Global South by the Global North. Africa sits at the centre of this inequality. Accordingly, the production of knowledge on African…
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RVI spoke with the authors of the recent RVI-VNGi report, Governing Local Security in the Eastern Congo: Decentralization, police reform and interventions in the chieftancy of Buhavu, Michel Thill and Abel Cimanuka. Based on 30+ interviews, the report explores…
RVI s’est entretenu avec les auteurs du rapport récent de RVI et VNGi, La Gouvernance de la Sécurité Locale à l’est du Congo : Décentralisation, réforme de la police et interventions dans la chefferie de Buhavu, Michel Thill et Abel…
Rebels in Democratic Republic of Congo said on Tuesday they would withdraw from the eastern city of Goma only if President Joseph Kabila agreed to their demands, which the Congolese government was quick to dismiss as a farce. The…
Ce blog fait partie d’un projet de recherche intitulé Polisi Siku Kwa Siku sur la vie quotidienne du policier à Bukavu, ville dans l’est de la République démocratique du Congo. Le projet, financé par le Knowledge Management Fund du KPSRL, explore comment…
Ce blog fait partie d’un projet de recherche intitulé Polisi Siku Kwa Siku sur la vie quotidienne du policier à Bukavu, ville dans l’est de la République démocratique du Congo. Le projet, financé par le Knowledge Management Fund du KPSRL, explore comment…
The Institute recently wrapped up its fifteenth year of annual field courses, which were held this year in May and June in Kenya. The one-week intensive courses covered an array of historical and contemporary issues in the Horn of Africa, Sudan and…
In June and July, the Rift Valley Institute will hold the 2019 annual field courses in Ethiopia. Now in their sixteenth year, each course examines a different sub-region within eastern and central Africa: Sudan and South Sudan, the Great Lakes and the Horn of Africa. They…
Research on conflict and violence in the eastern Congo often focuses on rural areas, which harbour armed groups, and are the prime sites of military operations against these groups. However, conflict and insecurity do not stop at the…
A form of insecurity that first manifested in rural areas in North Kivu, since 2015, kidnappings for ransom have also become commonplace in the city of Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Here, it is children who are…
Recent Publications

Enhancing the Role of Borderland Communities in Ethiopia’s Foreign Policy
October 15, 2025
Ethiopia’s borderland communities (BLCs) have historically influenced the country’s relations with its neighbours. These peripheral regions often serve as hubs for cross-border trade, repositories of natural resources and, at times, flashpoints of conflict. Surrounded by six neighbouring countries – Djibouti,

Women in the Social Sciences and Humanities in Ethiopia: The case of Addis Ababa University
October 10, 2025
This preliminary assessment is part of the launch exercise of the Ethiopian Women Researchers’ Network (EWNET). Focusing on Addis Ababa University as a pioneering higher institution in the country, the study looks into the status of women within these disciplines
Iddir in Contemporary Social Science and Humanities Research in Ethiopia: Historicizing and theorizing local infrastructures of care
October 3, 2025
The second Ethiopian Women Researchers Network (EWNET) seminar was delivered by Desalegn Amsalu, Anteneh Tesfaye, Yasmin Bushra and Helen Zeru on 3 July 2025 at Addis Ababa University’s Alle School of Fine Arts & Design. EWNET SEMINAR SERIES REPORT The