Customary Authorities Displaced examines the consequences of conflict and displacement on traditional forms of authority among refugees from former Western Equatoria state. Various forms of non-customary authority proliferate in these refugee settlements, in some ways filling the gap left by the missing chiefs. The report also explores discussions around the controversial…

The legacy of Somali piracy, the threat of terrorists transiting between Yemen and Somalia, and the deepening conflict in Yemen, mean international actors tend to view the Gulf of Aden through a security lens. This report outlines the local social and economic relations that criss-cross the maritime border between Yemen and Somalia, and which, despite being less visible to international policy…

Following the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) and the subsequent independence of South Sudan in 2011, many agro-pastoralist and pastoralist areas of the country have experienced an upsurge of livestock raiding, counter raiding and cycles of revenge killing. Peace is the Name of Our Cattle-Camp considers the communal resources brought to bear on conflict resolution in Eastern…

Northern Bahr el-Ghazal, like much of South Sudan, is in a protracted state of social and economic crisis, rooted in generations of armed conflict, forced resettlements, and a shift towards a cash and market economy. Since the 1980s, family units and livelihoods have been destroyed, displaced or reworked by conflict and most people have been forced to engage in precarious work for survival.…

Fifty years ago, most households in South Sudan produced the grain they ate, organizing agricultural labour and distributing small surpluses mostly through kinship and other social networks. Now, the majority of households buy most of their food. This transition from self-sufficiency to market dependence took place during long wars, which transformed or distorted almost every aspect of…

A System of Insecurity: Understanding Urban Violence and Crime in Bukavu examines the role of state and non-state actors in the provision of security, and citizens’ perceptions of, experiences with and responses to insecurity in Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province in the eastern Congo.

Depuis le début de 2019, une série de meurtres, de vols qualifiés avec violence et d’enlèvements frappe les quartiers périphériques de Goma. L’aggravation rapide de cette criminalité violente a alarmé les habitants de la ville et les a poussés à réclamer une réponse plus efficace au gouvernement local et aux services de sécurité.

Since the start of 2019, a series of murders, violent robberies and kidnappings have taken place in peripheral neighbourhoods of Goma. The rapid rise in violent crime has alarmed city residents and led to calls for the local government and security services to respond more effectively. Insecurity in Goma: Experiences, actors and responses maps out the dynamics and experiences of, and…

Un système d'insécurité: Comprendre la violence et la criminalité urbaines à Bukavu examine le rôle des rôle des acteurs étatiques et non étatiques dans la mise à disposition d’outils pour la sécurité, ainsi qu’à la façon dont les citoyens perçoivent l’insécurité, leur vécu à cet égard et les réponses qu’ils y apportent à Bukavu, capitale de la province du Sud-Kivu dans l'est du Congo…

The report considers the hybrid role of customary authorities in governance, the part they play in defining customs, and the evolving nature of chiefship within a rapidly changing and urbanizing society. It concludes that chiefs, and other customary authorities, have retained a meaningful role within South Sudan and do not constitute a static system of governance or affiliation. Given this,…