Opportunities and Challenges of Ensuring Stability in Kenya’s 2017 General Elections
Executive summary With Africa having steadily begun the litany of elections billed for 2017, the orderly manner in which Somalia’s elections took place restored a glimmer of hope in those who think only the worst for Africa’s democratic and electoral maturity. With over 20 elections scheduled to take place before December 2017, the African Union […]
In Defense of Democracy
Executive Summary The years 2015 and 2016 were crucial for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) from the perspective of its efforts to ensure sustainable peace and stability in the region, through supporting the conduct of peaceful elections and the orderly transfer of power.1 A total of 10 of its 15 member states […]
Preliminary reflections on the 2016 Liberian National Conflict-Mapping Exercise
This Policy and Practice Brief (PPB) is the first of a two-part series of papers focusing on the Liberian Government’s 2016 National Conflict-Mapping Exercise (NCME). With respect to the scale, scope and underlying innovation – in terms of process and methodology – of the exercise, this series of papers aims to explore, document and critically […]
A fractured way forward for a Global Peace and Security Agenda
Executive Summary In 2015, the United Nations (UN) took stock of three key global peace and security review processes, all of which contain various observations and recommendations to better prepare, inform, and potentially reform, the organisation. This Policy and Practice Brief (PPB) seeks to unpack these reviews, identify common threads and elements and provide insight […]
The Role of Inclusive Multi-stakeholder Partnerships in Enhancing Conflict Transformation in the Great Lakes
Executive Summary Cyclical conflicts which continue to plague the Great Lakes region of Africa necessitate a reflection on the effectiveness of peacebuilding interventions. While many reasons account for this, without knowledge of triggers of relapse into conflict, and without enhancing grassroots-based approaches to managing the causes of conflict, peace will remain elusive under existing intervention […]
The institutionalisation of mediation support within the ECOWAS Commission
Executive Summary The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission established the Mediation Facilitation Division (MFD) in June 2015 to backstop mediation efforts undertaken by its mediation organs, member states, non-state actors and joint initiatives with other international organisations, such as the African Union Commission (AUC) and the United Nations (UN). In January 2016, […]
The International Conference on the Great Lakes Region as a peacebuilding instrument for civil society organisations
Executive Summary This policy paper examines the prospective role of civil society organisations (CSOs) within the mechanisms and structures of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), which was created to address conflict challenges faced by states within the Great Lakes region.1 The ICGLR was established in 2003 to provide an inclusive platform […]
Protecting the rights of women
Executive Summary Gender is increasingly becoming an integral consideration in peace processes, as called for in the United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325, adopted in 2000 as the first ever formal women, peace and security resolution passed by the United Nations (UN). Other UN documents that recognise the importance of gender mainstreaming in peace […]
Angolan refugees in Zambia
Executive Summary Local integration continues to be an important option in the basket of comprehensive strategies to achieve long-term solutions to refugee crises, particularly those caused by protracted conflicts. While many refugees may voluntarily repatriate to their countries of origin, with some benefiting from resettlement in third countries, local integration presents a durable solution that […]
When refugees cannot return home
Executive Summary The large number of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Great Lakes region poses immense challenges to peacebuilding processes within the countries affected, as well as in that entire conflict system. An influx of refugees impacts peace and security, citizenship considerations, as well as cross-border and ethnic conflicts, among others. A […]