The Nairobi Forum and the British Institute in Eastern Africa co-hosted the launch of a special Somalia edition of the Journal of Eastern African Studies on 19 April. The meeting, entitled ‘Continuities and change: Social, political and economic dynamics in Somalia…
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On 29 and 30 April the Nairobi Forum hosted a workshop to discuss the impact of war, prolonged conflict, displacement and exile on Somali men and youth. The workshop, convened by Judith Gardner (co-author of The Untold Story: The War…
There could hardly be a more poignant or devastating reminder of divisive instability that has spread throughout the Horn of Africa. On Monday, I moderated a discussion panel on how arts and literature can help rebuild society in the…
On November 28, for the fifth time in 10 years, the former British protectorate of Somaliland held multiparty elections. With more than 2,000 candidates from seven political parties and associations contesting 379 seats, international observers described the polls as…
Even before it kicks off in earnest, the assault on Somalia's port city of Kismayo is causing jitters. A preliminary push by UN-backed African Union troops on the last bastion of Somalia's Al-Shabab insurgency has already added to Somalia's…
By Michel Thill The current debate over Rwanda’s support for M23––the latest rebellion in North Kivu––has refocused international attention on this crisis-ridden eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Much of the media coverage has focused on…
‘Gatekeepers’ are siphoning off food aid intended for internally displaced people living in squalid camps in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, Refugees International said in a report on Thursday, calling on aid agencies to stop operating via remote control from…
The election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as President of Somalia on 10 September was a major event in the region, bringing to an end a deeply flawed, eight-year political transition. The election of an active member of civil society…
By Sally Healy On 20 August the Ethiopian authorities announced the sudden death of the Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, who had been at the helm of Ethiopian politics for twenty-one years. At the age of 57, Meles still seemed…
Since it declared independence in 1991, Somaliland has worked to develop a system of multi-party democracy. The result is a relatively complex but home-grown set of political arrangements, providing concessions to and incorporating different interest groups. This was the…
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