Summary • Historically, the people living along the Blue Nile – Benishangul-Gumuz borderlands in what is now Sudan and Ethiopia have been politically and socially marginalized within their respective political entities. As such they have sought ways to address…
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.
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Armed opposition groups in Sudan and Ethiopia’s border regions have a history of leveraging support, often military, from their neighbours to aid their political aspirations at home. These dynamics have fluctuated in line with broader changes in the region…
In Sudan, the revolutionary upsurge of 2018/2019 signalled the implosion of the country’s postcolonial political order. The political parties of old have seen their social bases wither away and their ideological hold over the Sudanese people corrode under the…
- By Diana Felix da Costa, John Boloch Kumen
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This blog post discusses how the Murle social institution of age-sets (sometimes known as generations) has, in recent years, been fragmenting and is becoming increasingly militarized. Body scarification is a valuable lens through which to view these transformations, as…
This briefing considers the changing political situation in Sudan with a particular focus on the future of the Juba Peace Agreement ( JPA). It explores how the relationship between two key factions in the conflict has complicated the ongoing discussions…
This is the first paper in a series considering the future of Sudan’s Juba Peace Agreement (JPA) and peace-making after the fall of Omar al-Bashir in 2019. It was commissioned by the Rift Valley Institute for the UK government’s…
This briefing considers the changing political situation in Sudan with a particular focus on the future of the Juba Peace Agreement (JPA) and the evolving political and security dynamics in the east of the country. It considers the role…
War, Migration and Work examines the history of labour migration and labour relations in present day South Sudan’s Baher El-Ghazal borderlands with Darfur and Kordofan (regions of present day Sudan). Beginning in the nineteenth century, the report charts the evolution…
جاء تصميم العملية الانتقالية في السودان لتؤدي إلى – وتتقدم من خلال – انتخابات قومية تثبت نجاح ومصداقية الانتقال السياسي. لكن هذا الأمر ينطوي على مخاطر كبيرة. فقد تتعرض العملية الانتخابية، وخاصة نتائجها، للتشكيك والطعن من قبل أصحاب…
This briefing considers the changing political situation in Sudan with a particular focus on the future of the Juba Peace Agreement (JPA) and the evolving political and security dynamics in the Two Areas. It is the third in a…
Recent Publications
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
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in Post-2018 Ethiopia: Navigating church–state and inter-religious dynamics
April 4, 2025
This report examines the complex and shifting situation of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) in post-2018 Ethiopia, highlighting its struggle to maintain influence amid political, social and religious changes. In addition to examining both the current EOTC relationship with
Thinking about Borderlands: Observations and implications from XCEPT programme research
March 31, 2025
Do the ways in which policymakers and national governments view borderlands reflect how the communities living there experience them? Building on this, can a better understanding of the characteristics of borderlands help in promoting development, improving governance and making more