This paper offers an analysis of conflict trends in Ethiopia’s Benishangul–Gumuz Regional State, focusing on the period since the 2018 national political transition. As well as providing a historical overview, it examines the drivers of contemporary violence, the role…
RVI publishes books, research reports, research papers, briefings and meeting reports in a range of formats. Publications cover policy, research, arts, culture and local knowledge in the countries of eastern and central Africa. Research publications—books, reports and papers—are peer-reviewed. Some RVI publications are also available in French and/or Arabic.
The RVI is a signatory of the Budapest Open Access Initiative (2001); all publications are free for download in PDF format under Creative Commons licences. The views expressed in books and reports published by the RVI are those of the authors, not the Institute.
SEARCH
PUBLICATION TYPE
LANGUAGE
REGION
COUNTRY
- By Robert Aharanya Claudio
- Download
This blog examines the social impact of the shifting course of the Nabek River in Kakuma refugee camp where, when the river overflows and changes direction, it sweeps away homes, forcing refugees to migrate internally. By Robert Aharanya Claudio…
Dereje Feyissa and Fana Gebresenbet, with Abreham Abebe This report offers a case study of the contestation for ownership and control of key urban resources in Hosanna, located in the Hadiya zone of the newly formed Central Ethiopia Regional…
- By Youniyas Abdurahman Seliman
- Download
This blog explores how water scarcity affects women and girls, especially in their daily tasks, safety and health in Kakuma refugee camp, which is located in Kenya’s hot and semi-arid Turkana region. By Youniyas Abdurahman Seliman Introduction As climate…
- By Tamanji Logodi
- Download
The research for this blog found that locally led women’s microfinance groups provided financial security and opportunities for refugee women who could not get funds from banks or NGOs. By Tamanji Logodi Introduction Originally a temporary home for South…
Dire Dawa, the second-most populous city in Ethiopia, is known as a melting pot of ethnic, language and religious groups in the east of the country. In the aftermath of the 2018 national political transition, however, the city, which…
This report was written for the Ethiopia Peace Research Facility (PRF) and is part of its Knowledge for Peace (K4P) series on contested borderlands The PRF is an independent facility combining timely analysis on peace and conflict from Ethiopian…
Why are the majority of refugees in Kakuma and Kalobeyei refugee camps in north–west Kenya resistant to the Kenyan government’s new official policy of integration with the local community? This paper explores this question through personal interviews and focus…
This paper explores how agency and livelihoods are articulated and shaped in the overall picture of refugee life as a whole, specifically in Kakuma refugee camp in north-western Kenya. It digs into the details of how refugees exercise self-reliance,…
This paper investigates the coping and adaptation strategies used by women in Kakuma refugee camp in response to water scarcity, a pressing issue worsened by climate change. Qualitative data collection methods, including focus group discussions, interviews and observations, were…
Recent Publications
Commodification and Conflict in the Horn of Africa Borderlands
April 1, 2026
This report synthesizes findings from the Rift Valley Institute’s X-Border Local Research Network (2019–2025). In the surveyed studies, 25 leading local and international area specialists conducted extensive qualitative fieldwork across borderlands in South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and the Somali
Peace and Instability: Tigray since the Pretoria Agreement
March 26, 2026
CONFLICT TRENDS ANALYSIS / MARCH 2026 Summary THE ETHIOPIA PEACE RESEARCH FACILITY This conflict trends analysis was produced by the Ethiopia Peace Research Facility (PRF). The PRF is an independent facility combining timely analysis on peace and conflict from Ethiopian
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)