COVID-19 & Conflict
ACCORD has rapidly adapted to the new COVID-19 reality and has refocused and restructured a significant proportion of its staff and effort on identifying & monitoring, tracking & analysing, and preparing & responding to COVID-19 related social unrest and violent conflict in Africa.
ACCORD’s focus on COVID-19
ACCORD has adapted to the new COVID-19 reality, refocusing and restructuring a significant proportion of its staff and its effort on identifying & monitoring, tracking &, analysing, and preparing & responding to COVID-19 related social-unrest and violent conflict in Africa.
Through our networks across Africa, and supported by available online data, ACCORD identifies COVID-19 related incidents and trends that may provide early warning of rising tensions that could develop into social unrest and violent conflict. Once the incidents are captured in the dataset, ACCORD analyses the trends and publishes a weekly COVID-19 Africa Conflict and Resilience Monitor, in order to share the information and analysis with all stakeholders.
ACCORD then works with its in-country networks and other local, regional, continental and international partners and stakeholders, to encourage and support interventions aimed at mitigating, and where possible preventing, COVID-19 related social unrest and violent conflict.
This week's
COVID-19 Conflict & Resilience Monitor
20 Dec 2021
For the final Monitor for 2021 we feature a piece by ACCORD’s Founder and Executive Director, Advocate Vasu Gounden. In his article, Adv Gounden reflects on the violent protests that took place in South Africa in July, the local government elections in November, and links this to the spate of recent coups and other developments in Africa, to ask what the implications of these trends are for the future of democracy for Africa and South Africa.
This is followed by an article from the Monitor’s chief editor, Prof Cedric de Coning who writes about several landmark decisions the African Union’s Peace and Security Council took in 2021 about the integration of the climate-peace nexus. Prof De Coning argues that Africa has become a global leader in highlighting the impact that climate related events are having on conflict, and he outlines the agenda that is emerging around these issues at the African Union.
We follow this with a piece from Ayan Hassan Nuriye, a Program Officer of the Mediation Support Unit of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD). Ayan writes about the importance of strengthening the role of local and community peacebuilding, as well as the value of linking these local initiatives with those at the national and multinational level, in order to create and sustain strategic peacebuilding partnerships.
Finally, we end this week’s Monitor with an article from ACCORD’s Katharine Bebington and Halima Ahmed who have written a piece reflecting on the progress made with efforts to silence the guns in Africa this year.
Feature Articles
ECCAS at 38: Passing and taking up the baton of regional integration
The construction of the community of destiny passes by the emergence and the formatting of a community citizenship which does not go without strong moments of awareness. The day of regional integration is given to us to revive, stimulate and develop this awareness of our belonging and community destiny within the Community that forms the eleven Member States of ECCAS.
Establishment of an ECCAS Youth Volunteer Corps to strengthen regional solidarity, regional integration and development
The Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) has decided to establish a Corps of Young Volunteers dedicated to work towards regional integration and development.
The Network of ECCAS Women Mediators in Central Africa
In order to strengthen cooperation in the area of peace and security, the Central African Peace and Security Council (COPAX), was created in 2004 not only to deploy military and civilian missions but also to participate in mediation in crisis situations in the sub-region.
COVID-19 News
An introduction to Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV)
ACCORD is an African based global conflict management institution and think tank with nearly 30 years of experience.
The COVID-19 crisis had disrupted ACCORD’s usual work, but the Institution has rapidly adapted and it has now refocused and restructured a significant proportion of its staff and effort on identifying & monitoring, tracking &, analysing and responding to the COVID-19 related social-unrest and violent conflict in Africa.
Local Contact?
If you are able to share information from your experiences on the ground with the crisis in Africa, we'd really like to hear from you. Please get in touch!