Rift Valley Institute: Recent Episodes
Rift Valley Institute
The Rift Valley Institute is a non-profit research and training organization working with communities and institutions in Eastern and Central Africa. RVI programmes connect local knowledge to global information systems, aiming to modify development practice. They include field-based social research, support for indigenous educational institutions, in-country training courses and a digital library. www.riftvalley.net
The 'Local Governance in Somalia' RVI podcast discusses devolution of power in Somalia in the context of rapid urbanisation. The podcast reflects on the 2021 World Bank Review, which aims to facilitate a more informed dialogue between the government, private sector, civil society, development partners and other stakeholders on a more comprehensive urban development strategy in Somalia.
In the 3rd episode, Horn of Africa Programme Manager at the Rift Valley Institute- Hannah Stogdon- speaks with Dr. Ken Menkhaus, professor of Political Science at Davidson College, Horn of Africa and Land Urbanisation specialist working on local governance, service delivery, and forced displacement. The podcast also hosts Makiko Watanabe, a Senior Urban Specialist working on local governance, service delivery, and forced displacement and Dr. Olivia D’Aoust who is a senior urban economist working on issues related to the economics of urbanisation, territorial development, and conflict and fragility.
The RVI education programme aims to inform influential constituencies working in eastern and central Africa about the people and communities in the countries where they work. It consists of 2 main types of trainings; the Annual Field Courses on Sudan and South Sudan, the Horn of Africa, and the Great Lakes; and bespoke courses tailored for a variety of international organisations.
These courses provide a basis for an understanding of current political and developmental challenges within the countries or regions in question.
Watch the trailer for more information on our training programme and be on the lookout for new courses on our newsletter, social media platforms and website.
You can also reach out by email at courses@riftvalley.net.
'Land in Somalia' RVI podcast discusses land governance in Somalia in the context of rapid urbanisation. It looks at cities where both opportunities and challenges for Somalia’s development and prosperity are most acutely felt. The experts debate how to manage and reduce the risks Somali cities face so that they can increase their potential to provide livelihoods and deliver services in a way that is more inclusive and accessible for all.
In the second episode,Horn of Africa Programme Manager at the Rift Valley Institute- Hannah Stogdon hosts World Bank Land Administration specialist Paul Prettitore and co-lead of the Land and Conflict Working Group and is conducting research on the relationships between land, conflict and inclusion. Prior to joining the Bank, Paul was a Human Rights Advisor and Property Law Coordinator at the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The podcast discusses the 2021 World Bank Review on Urbanisation in Somalia with the aim of facilitating a more informed dialogue between the government, private sector, civil society, development partners and other stakeholders on the role of land governance in a more comprehensive urban development strategy in Somalia.
This RVI podcast discusses Governance in Somalia in the context of rapid urbanisation. It looks at cities where both opportunities and challenges for Somalia’s development and prosperity are most acutely felt. The experts debate how to manage and reduce the risks Somali cities face so that they can increase their potential to provide livelihoods and deliver services in a way that is more inclusive and accessible for all.
In this first episode of two, Horn of Africa Programme Manager at the Rift Valley Institute- Hannah Stogdon talks to Horn of Africa expert Tobias Hagmann who is the Director of Public Culture Lab Ltd in Switzerland and an associate professor in development studies at Roskilde University in Denmarks. He was the Lead Researcher for the RVI study on Urbanisation in 7 Somali cities that contributed to the World Bank’s Urbanisation Review.
Over the past two decades, the Horn and Eastern Africa Region have witnessed a proliferation of peace-making and peace-building processes as a means of democratisation. A wealth and power sharing governance arrangements designed and upheld by regional and international institutions often saw the transfer of political decision-making away from the local and national level, consolidating them instead in the hands of belligerent elites and a global technocratic class of experts. How have these forms of international diplomatic interventions shaped prospects for peace and democratisation in the region?
Sharath Srinivasan’s When Peace Kills Politics: International Intervention and Unending Wars in the Sudans (Hurst/OUP, 2021) provides a refreshing appraisal of the theory and practice of peace-making by drawing attention to its inherent contradictions that contain risks of violent failure. The book launch engaged the history of interrelated peace-making efforts and their failures in Sudan and South Sudan, from the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement to the more recent Juba Peace Agreement signed in 2020, and their potential to subvert non-violent civic politics.
The book launch was co-hosted and organised jointly by RVI and the International African Institute and supported by Hurst publishers
This podcast recording of an RVI forum on Sudan's political developments discusses the current situation following the military coup, whether a military dictatorship is inevitable and the possible implications of it on domestic affairs and international support.
Over the past year, countries across the East Africa region have held elections to elect leaders at various levels. These polls have been accompanied by complaints over irregularities, violence and a general lack of credibility. In Uganda and Tanzania, disputed polls and allegations of rigging by incumbents were followed by brutal crackdowns on democratic freedoms. In Ethiopia, despite the AU’s election observer mission declaring the twice-postponed election “orderly, peaceful and credible”, a fifth of the country failed to take part in voting owing to an opposition boycott, war and insecurity, and logistical problems. Somalia’s failure to hold long- delayed indirect elections has endangered its fragile peace. While in Somaliland-despite urban low voter turnout and ballot tampering in the rural areas, the long delayed parliamentary and local council elections were smoothly run leading to a surprise loss to the ruling party and a peaceful transfer of power. Still, harassment of opposition candidates during campaigns - and women exclusion remain a feature of the electoral process. All this begs the question; Are elections in East Africa a democratising force or a flashpoint for violence?
Over the past year, countries across the East Africa region have held elections to elect leaders at various levels. These polls have been accompanied by complaints over irregularities, violence and a general lack of credibility. In Uganda and Tanzania, disputed polls and allegations of rigging by incumbents were followed by brutal crackdowns on democratic freedoms. In Ethiopia, despite the AU’s election observer mission declaring the twice-postponed election “orderly, peaceful and credible”, a fifth of the country failed to take part in voting owing to an opposition boycott, war and insecurity, and logistical problems. Somalia’s failure to hold long- delayed indirect elections has endangered its fragile peace. While in Somaliland-despite urban low voter turnout and ballot tampering in the rural areas, the long delayed parliamentary and local council elections were smoothly run leading to a surprise loss to the ruling party and a peaceful transfer of power. Still, harassment of opposition candidates during campaigns - and women exclusion remain a feature of the electoral process. All this begs the question; Are elections in East Africa a democratising force or a flashpoint for violence?
Professor Munzoul, Dean of Scientific Enquiry at Khartoum university explores to what degree has electoral management and the role of the National Elections Council (NEC) determined the success and quality of elections? and moving forward in the post revolution period, should the 2024 projected elections rely on the existing network of experienced administrators or aim to create a new generation? In Debate with Professor Justin- Durham University on how electoral politics actually work i.e how campaigns are run, how different grassroots politics have actually been between liberal election like 1986 and the NCP's elections i,e are there similarities? T
في الحلقة الثانية من السلسلة الصوتية 'انتخابات السودان' نناقش- على الرغم من الاستياء الشعبي من الأحزاب والعمليات السياسية - الدور الذي يمكن أن يلعبه المجتمع المدني في تحقيق الديمقراطية من خلال انتخابات حرة ونزيهة.
In this audio series we discuss, among other things, election models adopted in Sudan's modern history. It will also discuss the key choices available for policymakers who are involved in election design.
After a period of political impasse, leaders in Somalia— under the leadership of Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble— have agreed to a timetable for indirect elections in 2021. Elections for the Upper House are now scheduled for 25 July, for the Lower House between 10 August and 10 September, with the presidential election scheduled for 10 October.
Though easing tensions, especially in the capital Mogadishu where armed forces had confronted each other in April, the agreement left several crucial elements of the electoral process unaddressed, including the selection process of delegates and the mechanism for ensuring the 30 percent quota for women’s seats in the Parliament, security management and electoral funding.
At the same time, Puntland Federal State is testing a one-person-one vote electoral model for local council elections in three districts - Qardho, Eyl, and Ufeyn. This is a significant development, because a successfully managed electoral process in Puntland could provide a model for a broader democratization process across Somalia.
On 15 July 2021, the Rift Valley Institute in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Foundation and The Elephant hosted a panel discussion to examine these issues and prospects for peaceful elections. The webinar also explored what the democratization process in Puntland could mean for Somalia’s long term democratic trajectory.
Speakers Moderator- Mary Harper BBC
Panelists Abdinassir Yusuf-Puntland Development & Research Centre (PDRC)
Idil Ibrahim - Life and Peace Institute
Ruqia Botan - LeadNow
Omar Mahmood - International Crisis Group
After a period of political impasse, leaders in Somalia— under the leadership of Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble— have agreed to a timetable for indirect elections in 2021. Elections for the Upper House are now scheduled for 25 July, for the Lower House between 10 August and 10 September, with the presidential election scheduled for 10 October.
Though easing tensions, especially in the capital Mogadishu where armed forces had confronted each other in April, the agreement left several crucial elements of the electoral process unaddressed, including the selection process of delegates and the mechanism for ensuring the 30 percent quota for women’s seats in the Parliament, security management and electoral funding.
At the same time, Puntland Federal State is testing a one-person-one vote electoral model for local council elections in three districts - Qardho, Eyl, and Ufeyn. This is a significant development, because a successfully managed electoral process in Puntland could provide a model for a broader democratization process across Somalia.
On 15 July 2021, the Rift Valley Institute in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Foundation and The Elephant hosted a panel discussion to examine these issues and prospects for peaceful elections. The webinar also explored what the democratization process in Puntland could mean for Somalia’s long term democratic trajectory.
Speakers Moderator- Mary Harper BBC
Panelists Abdinassir Yusuf-Puntland Development & Research Centre (PDRC)
Idil Ibrahim - Life and Peace Institute
Ruqia Botan - LeadNow
Omar Mahmood - International Crisis Group
After a period of political impasse, leaders in Somalia— under the leadership of Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble— have agreed to a timetable for indirect elections in 2021. Elections for the Upper House are now scheduled for 25 July, for the Lower House between 10 August and 10 September, with the presidential election scheduled for 10 October.
Though easing tensions, especially in the capital Mogadishu where armed forces had confronted each other in April, the agreement left several crucial elements of the electoral process unaddressed, including the selection process of delegates and the mechanism for ensuring the 30 percent quota for women’s seats in the Parliament, security management and electoral funding.
At the same time, Puntland Federal State is testing a one-person-one vote electoral model for local council elections in three districts - Qardho, Eyl, and Ufeyn. This is a significant development, because a successfully managed electoral process in Puntland could provide a model for a broader democratization process across Somalia.
On 15 July 2021, the Rift Valley Institute in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Foundation and The Elephant hosted a panel discussion to examine these issues and prospects for peaceful elections. The webinar also explored what the democratization process in Puntland could mean for Somalia’s long term democratic trajectory.
Speakers Moderator- Mary Harper BBC
Panelists Abdinassir Yusuf-Puntland Development & Research Centre (PDRC)
Idil Ibrahim - Life and Peace Institute
Ruqia Botan - LeadNow
Omar Mahmood - International Crisis Group
On 15 June 2021, the Rift Valley Forum in conjunction with The Elephant and the Heinrich Boll Foundation hosted a webinar to explore the prospects for holding successful elections in Ethiopia and what success would look like. The virtual forum focused on the impact of the ongoing conflict and violence; online activism and the media’s role; the participation of women; and what this election means for the longer-term democratization process in Ethiopia.
Moderator Muriithi Mutiga - Horn of Africa Project Director, International Crisis Group
Panelists
Abdeta Beyene- Executive Director, Centre for Dialogue, Research and Cooperation Dr Adem Abebe- Programme Officer, International IDEA Tsedale Lemma- Founder, Addis Standard Magazine
On 15 June 2021, the Rift Valley Forum in conjunction with The Elephant and the Heinrich Boll Foundation hosted a webinar to explore the prospects for holding successful elections in Ethiopia and what success would look like. The virtual forum focused on the impact of the ongoing conflict and violence; online activism and the media’s role; the participation of women; and what this election means for the longer-term democratization process in Ethiopia.
Moderator Muriithi Mutiga - Horn of Africa Project Director, International Crisis Group
Panelists
Abdeta Beyene- Executive Director, Centre for Dialogue, Research and Cooperation Dr Adem Abebe- Programme Officer, International IDEA Tsedale Lemma- Founder, Addis Standard Magazine
On 15 June 2021, the Rift Valley Forum in conjunction with The Elephant and the Heinrich Boll Foundation hosted a webinar to explore the prospects for holding successful elections in Ethiopia and what success would look like. The virtual forum focused on the impact of the ongoing conflict and violence; online activism and the media’s role; the participation of women; and what this election means for the longer-term democratization process in Ethiopia.
Moderator Muriithi Mutiga - Horn of Africa Project Director, International Crisis Group
Panelists
Abdeta Beyene- Executive Director, Centre for Dialogue, Research and Cooperation Dr Adem Abebe- Programme Officer, International IDEA Tsedale Lemma- Founder, Addis Standard Magazine
On 30 March 2021, the Rift Valley Forum, in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Foundation and The Elephant, brought together experts from the region to discuss lessons from the 2020 elections in Uganda and Tanzania and prospects for successful elections in Somalia and Ethiopia in 2021. The discussion highlighted how these countries tend to mirror each other in numerous ways, with cyclical and an often slow pace of reforms in electoral justice as a predominant issue.
Moderator Patrick Gathara Journalist, The Elephant
Discussants Fatma Karume Former President, Tanganyika Law Society
Omar Mahmood Senior Analyst, Somalia, International Crisis Group
Adem Abebe Programme Officer, Elections and Constitutional Governance, Ethiopia and Africa, International IDEA
Kalundi Serumanga Journalist, Filmmaker and Cultural Activist
On 30 March 2021, the Rift Valley Forum, in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Foundation and The Elephant, brought together experts from the region to discuss lessons from the 2020 elections in Uganda and Tanzania and prospects for successful elections in Somalia and Ethiopia in 2021. The discussion highlighted how these countries tend to mirror each other in numerous ways, with cyclical and an often slow pace of reforms in electoral justice as a predominant issue.
Moderator Patrick Gathara Journalist, The Elephant
Discussants Fatma Karume Former President, Tanganyika Law Society
Omar Mahmood Senior Analyst, Somalia, International Crisis Group
Adem Abebe Programme Officer, Elections and Constitutional Governance, Ethiopia and Africa, International IDEA
Kalundi Serumanga Journalist, Filmmaker and Cultural Activist
On 30 March 2021, the Rift Valley Forum, in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Foundation and The Elephant, brought together experts from the region to discuss lessons from the 2020 elections in Uganda and Tanzania and prospects for successful elections in Somalia and Ethiopia in 2021. The discussion highlighted how these countries tend to mirror each other in numerous ways, with cyclical and an often slow pace of reforms in electoral justice as a predominant issue.
Moderator Patrick Gathara Journalist, The Elephant
Discussants Fatma Karume Former President, Tanganyika Law Society
Omar Mahmood Senior Analyst, Somalia, International Crisis Group
Adem Abebe Programme Officer, Elections and Constitutional Governance, Ethiopia and Africa, International IDEA
Kalundi Serumanga Journalist, Filmmaker and Cultural Activist
RVI's Magnus Taylor speaks with RVI researchers, Joseph Diing Majok and Nicki Kindersley, about their latest report, 'Breaking Out of the Borderlands: Understanding migrant pathways from Northern Bahr el-Ghazal, South Sudan'.
The report takes the phenomena of the monetization of land, life and work in the borderland and looks at the consequences of this system for the young people who live in this region, arguing that the decision to leave South Sudan on long-distance migrant pathways can only be understood within the context of this militarized borderland economy. The young people who do decide to leave rely on mutual support and networks of information and care to survive. Due to distance and financial stress, these systems are now increasingly under strain.
On 17 September 2020, Somali leaders agreed on an indirect election model to be used for the country's upcoming elections, similar to the process used in 2016. Parliamentary elections were due to be completed by 28 December 2020, and presidential elections on 8 February 2021, but the consensus over the electoral process had begun to fray. A number of issues remain unresolved, which could further delay or delegitimize the electoral process. These include the composition of election management bodies, voting for seats allocated to Somaliland and election procedures in Jubbaland.
On 17 December 2020, the Rift Valley Forum, in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Foundation, hosted an online event to explore these issues. The forum was moderated by Peter Chonka, lecturer at Kings College. Mahad Wasuge discussed the proposed electoral model and the changes from the 2016 model. Dr. Hodan spoke about women's participation in dialogues leading to the ‘Mogadishu Model’ and the space for women in electoral bodies and institutions, notably the challenge of financing female candidates in Somalia.
In response to recent events in Ethiopia, notably the declining space for civil society and humanitarian actors to operate and limited media coverage of the Ethiopia conflict, on 1 December 2020, the Rift Valley Forum hosted a panel discussion to explore the role of regional bodies and civil society in managing and mitigating conflict.
The Forum was moderated by Rift Valley Forum Manager, Pauline Skaper. The panel of discussants included Rashid Abdi, Horn of Africa Political Analyst, Rita Mazzocchi, Horn of Africa Civil Society Forum, Peter Kamalingin, Uganda Country Director at Oxfam, and Kibreab Abera Lomencho, lawyer and activist.
On 28 October 2020, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with the Heinrich Boll Foundation, held the third forum in the Elections Series on the 2021 elections in Uganda and the prospects for political change in the country. The forum included a broader discussion on the role of youth and the need for an inter-generational dialogue given Uganda's high youth population; succession plans and what will follow Museveni's tenure; and how women's political participation can be reimagined and elevated.
The forum was moderated by Irene Ikomu, a lawyer and political analyst. Discussants included Irene Ovonji-Odida, lawyer and women’s rights activist, Raymond Mujuni, investigative journalist, Johncation Muhindo, founder of Creations Forum Afrika and Dr. Daniel Ruhuweza, lecturer at Makerere University.
On 30 September 2020, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with Heinrich Boll Foundation, hosted the second forum in the Elections Series on the 2020 elections in Tanzania. The forum examined the Tanzania experience under President Magufuli, leader of Chama Cha Mapinduzi, who was elected in 2015. Among the issues discussed was the repression and harassment faced by opposition parties, the media and civil society organizations. The discussion also explored the situation in the semi-autonomous island state of Zanzibar, where the polls were predicted to be highly contested, with a history of election-related violence.
The webinar was moderated by Oryem Nyeko from Human Rights Watch. Jenerali Ulimwengu of The East African and Fulgence Massawe of the Human Rights Centre in Tanzania were the key discussants, drawing from their experiences in journalism and human rights.
On 30 September 2020, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with Heinrich Boll Foundation, hosted the second forum in the Elections Series on the 2020 elections in Tanzania. The forum examined the Tanzania experience under President Magufuli, leader of Chama Cha Mapinduzi, who was elected in 2015. Among the issues discussed was the repression and harassment faced by opposition parties, the media and civil society organizations. The discussion also explored the situation in the semi-autonomous island state of Zanzibar, where the polls were predicted to be highly contested, with a history of election-related violence.
The webinar was moderated by Oryem Nyeko from Human Rights Watch. Jenerali Ulimwengu of The East African and Fulgence Massawe of the Human Rights Centre in Tanzania were the key discussants, drawing from their experiences in journalism and human rights.
On 16 September 2020, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with Heinrich Boll Foundation, hosted on online forum to explore the electoral atmosphere in the East and Horn of Africa region. The forum provided a critical space for the examination of contentious issues around elections scheduled for 2020 and 2021. The issues discussed included security, the role of the media, participation of women and the unprecedented challenges that COVID-19 poses for elections.
This forum was moderated by Rift Valley Forum Manager, Pauline Skaper, and drew perspectives from renowned experts. Mutriithi Mutiga (Horn of Africa Program Director, ICG) discussed the upcoming elections in Ethiopia and Somalia and the potential impacts on the wider region. Although several countries in the Horn were preparing for elections, Muriithi highlighted that in Ethiopia and Somalia, traditional elections would not necessarily be held but rather there would be a kind of political settlement to ensure stability. In the context of a high youth population in the region and increased access to social media and technology, Nanjala Nyabola discussed how these factors would affect future elections, especially in light of governments' realization of the power of social media and, in turn, the increasing policing of this space. Political commentator, Patrick Gathara, explored the role of mainstream traditional media in the lead-up to elections, and the way in which voices are amplified or suppressed. Dr. Awino Okech, SOAS, discussed the value of protests, highlighting the importance of protests as a means of democratic communication with government and in particular, the role of women in organizing.
On 16 September 2020, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with Heinrich Boll Foundation, hosted on online forum to explore the electoral atmosphere in the East and Horn of Africa region. The forum provided a critical space for the examination of contentious issues around elections scheduled for 2020 and 2021. The issues discussed included security, the role of the media, participation of women and the unprecedented challenges that COVID-19 poses for elections.
This forum was moderated by Rift Valley Forum Manager, Pauline Skaper, and drew perspectives from renowned experts. Mutriithi Mutiga (Horn of Africa Program Director, ICG) discussed the upcoming elections in Ethiopia and Somalia and the potential impacts on the wider region. Although several countries in the Horn were preparing for elections, Muriithi highlighted that in Ethiopia and Somalia, traditional elections would not necessarily be held but rather there would be a kind of political settlement to ensure stability. In the context of a high youth population in the region and increased access to social media and technology, Nanjala Nyabola discussed how these factors would affect future elections, especially in light of governments' realization of the power of social media and, in turn, the increasing policing of this space. Political commentator, Patrick Gathara, explored the role of mainstream traditional media in the lead-up to elections, and the way in which voices are amplified or suppressed. Dr. Awino Okech, SOAS, discussed the value of protests, highlighting the importance of protests as a means of democratic communication with government and in particular, the role of women in organizing.
In the second conversation with researchers from the Displaced Tastes project, Magnus Taylor—RVI’s Publications Manager—talks to Luga Aquila about his work on the cultural and economic significance of cassava for the Pujulu people of Central Equatoria, South Sudan. In particular, Luga explains the significance of Yoyoji-yojaja, a particular form of cassava cultivated by young men as a means to develop bride-wealth, which enables them to get married.
In this short conversation with RVI researcher Elizabeth Nyibol, Magnus Taylor—RVI’s Publications Manager—discusses the life of Elizabeth’s aunt, Mary Ajok, who is the main subject of a paper written by Nyibol in 2020. Mary’s life illustrates the extraordinary lengths that South Sudanese women have gone to in order to preserve their culture of seed cultivation, especially in times of conflict and displacement.
This show is brought to you under the South Sudan National Archives Project, supported by Norway and implemented by UNESCO in partnership with RVI, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.
The ninth Tarikh Tan’na (Our History) radio show in this second series will focus on "South Sudanese Experiences of Return".
Overview
As South Sudan hopefully moves towards peace, the country looks forward to the return of over four million displaced and refugee citizens. However, this is not the first time that refugees and internally displaced people have moved back to South Sudan. The South Sudan National Archives holds a wealth of records from previous refugee returns, including the return and resettlement of populations after the Anya-Nya wars in 1972. After the CPA in 2005, around four million people returned to South Sudan. Many South Sudanese people have extensive experience of displacement and return.
This history of return migration is also a history of societal reconstruction. With such large numbers of residents returning to their homeland, in 1972, from 2005, and again today, return migrations are times of social transformation. The archives record serious hardships for returnees, including hunger, a lack of health and education provision, problems of proving their rights to residence and nationality, and accessing land and livelihoods—all problems that returnees faced in 2005 and again today. Return and resettlement is also a moment of government reconstruction, as residents re-establish relationships with local and national government.
This long history of returns raises several questions. How have repeated returns and resettlements reshaped South Sudanese society? How have social reconstructions post-return changed relationships between men and women, and between young and old people? What effects do these return migrations have on the nature of local and national government in South Sudan?
The two guests were:
Hon. Francis Barson Yousa Head of Juba Economic Zone and Associate Lecturer at the University of Juba
Daniel Matur IOM South Sudan
This show is brought to you under the South Sudan National Archives Project, supported by Norway and implemented by UNESCO in partnership with RVI, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Museum and National Heritage (MCMNH).
Overview Epidemics are connected to the history of border management in South Sudan. As the British colonial government was established over the 1930s, administrators saw the control of infectious disease as a key reason for the start of a pass system across Southern borders. Officials designated ‘areas’ within which people's movements in and out were controlled with passes. These were the first passports in Southern Sudan, to allow people to travel outside of ‘infected’ districts within Southern Sudan, and to cross the borders into Congo, Central Africa and Uganda.
The passes were supposed to be issued by chiefs, and then stamped by clinics to show that the individual was free of infection. But this system was difficult to monitor and control—chiefs argued that people would just walk around the clinics and border posts, and the South Sudan National Archives in Juba records hundreds of people doing just that, to avoid the monitoring system.
Epidemics like sleeping sickness were also a good excuse for the government to control workers and monitor taxation. The pass system was a useful way for the authorities to try to control the number of seasonal migrants and labourers who left and entered Sudan. The 1930s pass system tried to stop migrant workers from leaving the fields in Southern Sudan to go to find paid work in Uganda’s sugar fields. The passes also were a way to try to force people to pay their taxes: passes were not issued by chiefs unless the person’s taxes were paid in full. The social need to control the epidemic was also useful for the political need to control taxation and workers.
Every borderland region of South Sudan has its own history of pass systems and border controls that relates to a past epidemic including cholera, measles, smallpox and livestock diseases.
The two guests were:
Professor Akway M. Cham Head of the Department of Community Medicine at the College of Medicine, University of Juba.
Professor Venansio Tombe Muludiang Professor of Demography at the School of Social and Economic Studies and an Advisor to Vice Chancellor on Community Outreach, University of Juba
Policy responses to COVID-19 in Eastern and the Horn of Africa with UNHCR, HIAS and IGAD.
COVID-19 and migration in Eastern and the Horn of Africa with the African Migration and Development Policy Centre (AMADPOC), Amnesty International and Refugee Consortium of Kenya (RCK).
This show is brought to you under the South Sudan National Archives Project, supported by Norway and implemented by UNESCO in partnership with RVI, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.
The fifth Tarikh Tana (Our History) radio show in this second series will focus on "Women and Customary Law in South Sudan.”
Overview South Sudanese women have often been subject to discrimination and unfair treatment in law since before the colonial period, but their struggles against these injustices, and their role in the justice system, has been hidden in archives and histories that have been written by and about men. But women have been involved in legal disputes—as victims, perpetrators, and accusers—throughout the history of customary and state law in South Sudan, and women have creatively used the legal system to struggle for freedoms and fight for rights, including through bringing cases to British officials under the Condominium government. Offenses by, and against, women have also been treated differently by patriarchal authorities through history: women have often been accused of being poisoners, witches, and engaging in adultery, and have fought against these accusations. There is much more research to be done on these hidden histories of women’s struggles in the South Sudan National Archive
The two guests were:
Kuyang Harriet Loggo
MP Georgett Lat Mading
This show is brought to you under the South Sudan National Archives Project, supported by Norway and implemented by UNESCO in partnership with RVI, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.
The fourth Tarikh Tana (Our History) radio show in this second series will focus on "An Evolution of Crime and Punishment in South Sudan”.
Overview South Sudan’s diverse communities have always had methods to establish wrongdoing, judge and decide on disputes, settle conflicts, and organise compensation, punishment, and restitution. But with the formation of state government particularly since the 1930s, local chiefs and British officials tried to work out a common law for all of South Sudan. This history is documented in the South Sudan National Archives, where administrators and chiefs try to settle new criminal laws, standards of proof (which was difficult, particularly in cases of witchcraft and poisoning), and fair punishments. The Condominium government-built prisons, and this changed ideas of punishment across South Sudan. British and South Sudanese officials disagreed on fair punishments for crimes (for example child compensation for accidental deaths), and their attempts to standardise punishments across different communities led to confusion and suspicion on key issues such as dia and ‘blood compensation’.
The two guests were:
Dr Geri Raimondo Legge Professor of Law at the University of Juba and Former Justice of Court of Appeal in the Judiciary of South Sudan
Female police officer from Jubek State Police Service
This show is brought to you under the South Sudan National Archives Project, supported by Norway and implemented by UNESCO in partnership with RVI, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.
The third Tarikh Tan’na (Our History) radio show in this second series will focus on "Chiefs Remuneration in History: The Change of Funding Sources for Customary Leaders in South Sudan"
We will look at some proposals for Chief’s Pay and some pay sheets from late 1920s and early 1930s to understand how they used to get their pay.
Overview The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium determined that chiefs would be the lowest level of their government administration by the 1920s – in some cases, organising new chiefly authorities for areas and communities that did not have them before. Initially, these chiefs were compensated for their work through giving them a certain amount of the tax they collected, along with guns to enforce their authority. But by the 1930s, the government wanted to make this system cheaper and more organised. Correspondence between British governors from the South Sudan National Archives discussed the organisation of salaries for chiefs. Their pay was based on the number of people they were responsible for, and how much tax revenue they collected. This meant that chiefs’ authority was tied to how many people they represented – counted by government census and tax collectors – and chiefs’ pay was dependent on their proper collection of tax for the colonial government. This history raises several questions. Are chiefs government employees, or are they representatives of the people ? Who are chiefs responsible to ? Should chiefs’ remuneration be linked to the tax revenues they can get from people, or to number of people they serve, and what are the consequences of this? And what do people get in return for paying their chiefs?
The two guests will be:
1/ Mboribamu Renzi Paramount Chief of Tombura County
2/ Daniel Thon Dhuor Executice Chief of Eastern Lakes States (Yirol), Adior County
This show is brought to you under the South Sudan National Archives Project, supported by Norway and implemented by UNESCO in partnership with RVI, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.
The second show of Tarikh Tan’na (Our History) series will focus on “Justice: for who and by who?” We will take the Torit District court books for 1957 and 1959 found in the South Sudan National Archives, as the starting point for our discussion.
Court book By the 1930s, the Southern Sudanese Native Administration system (idara ahliya) was becoming bureaucratic and organised. Government outposts evolved into small towns and provided administrative centres for the hierarchy of courts established under the 1931 Chiefs’ Courts Ordinance. The court book for Torit C Court was one of many court books that recorded the outcomes of cases since the 1930s. These records were short and focused. They included the name, home village, and clan of the convicted person, brief details of the case, and the final sentence of imprisonment and fines.
These court books demonstrate the rise of government power in South Sudan, including the power to imprison people in new prisons. In these court books, we can see examples of punishments for government corruption, and the court’s attempt to punish a political rebel. We can also see how courts were places where values were decided: for example, determining the right punishment for rape or for theft, and deciding the right values of compensation money and prison sentences for accidental death and murder. Courts became spaces for debates about property, rights, and the government’s power to judge and punish.
The two guests will be:
Elias Asu Kidia Director General for Programs and Training, Local Government Board, Republic of South Sudan, Juba
Dr Geri Raimondo Legge Professor of Law at the University of Juba and former Justice of Court of Appeal in the Judiciary of South Sudan
This show is brought to you under the South Sudan National Archives Project, supported by Norway and implemented by UNESCO in partnership with RVI, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports.
The first Tarikh Tana (Our History) radio show in this second series will focus on What makes a chief? The changing role of customary authorities. We will take two personality sheets written about chiefs under the British Colonial period, found in the South Sudan National Archives, as the starting point for our discussion.
Chiefs personality sheets Beginning in the 1920s Native Administration (idara ahliya in Arabic) became the system of local government in the rural areas throughout Sudan. Native administration increased the power of local leaders who gained influence in dispute resolution, taxation and judicial functions. It was abolished in the northern provinces by Jaafar Nimeiri in 1971, but retained in the Southern Region after the Addis Ababa Agreement of 1972. The system required province administrators to identify local leaders, arrange them in hierarchies of chiefs and sub-chiefs, and organize chiefs courts. Personality reports were kept on each local leader identifying the territory they represented, their place in the hierarchy of Native Administration, and an outline of their duties. These reports were updated by each succeeding district commissioner, who added his own personal assessment of the chief. Often their comments say more about the district commissioner than about the chief.
The two guests will be:
Yosa Wawa Professor of History at University of Juba
Chief Kon Mayar Machar Paramount Chief of Aluak Luak in Eastern Lakes States
For thirty years, Somalia has experienced violence and upheaval. National and international efforts to build a state and achieve reconciliation are challenged by deep-rooted grievances, local conflicts and a long-running insurgency.
On 10th December, the Rift Valley Institute, CAN International and Aston University hosted a panel discussion to launch the book, War and Peace in Somalia: National Grievances, Local Conflict and Al-Shabaab.
The book, consisting of forty-two articles by conflict resolution specialists and leading experts on Somalia, is a unique collection of insights into Somalia’s protracted conflicts, and the efforts of Somali women, men and youth, and international actors to resolve them.
On 16 October 2019, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with the Institute of Development Studies at Sussex University and Friends of Lake Turkana, hosted a discussion of initial findings from the Seeing Conflict at the Margins project (seeingconflict.org/).
The Forum opened with an introduction to the project, followed by a screening and discussion of videos and photography created by local teams over the past two years. The speakers presented on ways of ‘seeing’ resource development in communities in and around the Lake Turkana Wind Power and Ol Karia geothermal power project and discuss the insights on local people’s perspectives and the research approaches used.
On 16 October 2019, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with the Institute of Development Studies at Sussex University and Friends of Lake Turkana, hosted a discussion of initial findings from the Seeing Conflict at the Margins project (https://seeingconflict.org/).
The Forum opened with an introduction to the project, followed by a screening and discussion of videos and photography created by local teams over the past two years. The speakers presented on ways of ‘seeing’ resource development in communities in and around the Lake Turkana Wind Power and Ol Karia geothermal power project and discuss the insights on local people’s perspectives and the research approaches used.
In June 2015, the Turkana County Government, UNHCR and the Central Government allocated a site near the Kalobeyei Township, 3.5 kilometres northwest of Kakuma refugee camp and measuring 15 square kilometres, to host the ever-growing number of South Sudanese refugees in Kakuma refugee camp.
Kalobeyei offers a new system for welcoming and hosting refugees by not only offering a market-based settlement in which they can integrate with host communities but also ensuring that refugee hosting is transformed into an opportunity for the development of the host community.
On 6 August 2019, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with Amnesty International, hosted Professor Alexander Betts of the University of Oxford and the Director of Refugee Economies Programme to discuss the successes, challenges and opportunities of the Kalobeyei initiative. The Refugee Economies Programme undertakes research on the economic lives of refugees, analysing refugee self-reliance, the role of the private sector and refugee economies in various countries, including Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia.
In June 2015, the Turkana County Government, UNHCR and the Central Government allocated a site near the Kalobeyei Township, 3.5 kilometres northwest of Kakuma refugee camp and measuring 15 square kilometres, to host the ever-growing number of South Sudanese refugees in Kakuma refugee camp.
Kalobeyei offers a new system for welcoming and hosting refugees by not only offering a market-based settlement in which they can integrate with host communities but also ensuring that refugee hosting is transformed into an opportunity for the development of the host community.
On 6 August 2019, the Rift Valley Forum, in partnership with Amnesty International, hosted Professor Alexander Betts of the University of Oxford and the Director of Refugee Economies Programme to discuss the successes, challenges and opportunities of the Kalobeyei initiative. The Refugee Economies Programme undertakes research on the economic lives of refugees, analysing refugee self-reliance, the role of the private sector and refugee economies in various countries, including Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia.
For the fifth time since 2010, Somalia is exploring options for an electoral model that will advance the country’s democratic process. Despite previous attempts to pursue democracy, Somalia has failed to shed its clan-based political system. So far, the Federal Government of Somalia and other key stakeholders have been unable to agree on a workable electoral model for the 2020 parliamentary and 2021 presidential elections.
On 25 July 2019, the Rift Valley Forum and the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS) launched a new report by HIPS, Somalia: In Search of a Workable 2020 Electoral Model.
The event presented the four possible electoral models discussed in the report and discussed the challenges and way forward for selecting an electoral model and laying the foundation for universal suffrage in Somalia.
For the fifth time since 2010, Somalia is exploring options for an electoral model that will advance the country’s democratic process. Despite previous attempts to pursue democracy, Somalia has failed to shed its clan-based political system. So far, the Federal Government of Somalia and other key stakeholders have been unable to agree on a workable electoral model for the 2020 parliamentary and 2021 presidential elections.
On 25 July 2019, the Rift Valley Forum and the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS) launched a new report by HIPS, Somalia: In Search of a Workable 2020 Electoral Model.
The event presented the four possible electoral models discussed in the report and discussed the challenges and way forward for selecting an electoral model and laying the foundation for universal suffrage in Somalia.
The report is a product of the X-Border Local Research Network, a component of DFID's Cross-border Conflict—Evidence, Policy and Trends (XCEPT) programme. The programme carries out research work to better understand the causes and impacts of conflict in border areas and their international dimensions. It supports more effective policymaking and development programming and builds the skills of local partners. The report was written by Eddie Thomas, an RVI Fellow.
On 14 February 2019, the Rift Valley Forum hosted a panel discussion to disseminate a new report —Participation, Voice and Governance in Investment Corridors in Africa: the case of the Lamu Port and South Sudan Ethiopia Transport Corridor Project, LAPSSET—produced by the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies of the University of Western Cape, in partnership with the Agricultural Policy Research in Africa Programme. The report examines the extent to which smallholder farmers, fishers, women and youth have been included in the implementation of LAPSSET, and its potential impact on these communities.
On 14 February 2019, the Rift Valley Forum hosted a panel discussion to disseminate a new report —Participation, Voice and Governance in Investment Corridors in Africa: the case of the Lamu Port and South Sudan Ethiopia Transport Corridor Project, LAPSSET—produced by the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies of the University of Western Cape, in partnership with the Agricultural Policy Research in Africa Programme. The report examines the extent to which smallholder farmers, fishers, women and youth have been included in the implementation of LAPSSET, and its potential impact on these communities.
Sheekada la yidhaa “Carrada Ayaan Dhunkannay” waa sheeko toos ah oo ku saabsan isku day wiil dhallinyar ah oo ka tahriibay Somaliland si uu u gaadho Yurub iyo dhibaatooyinka socdaalka uu ku maray Itoobiya, Suudaan iyo Libya oo ah socdaal ay isku dayeen da’yar badan oo Soomaali ahi.
In 2015, an estimated 154,000 migrants entered Europe via the Mediterranean from Libya—an increase of more than 1,000 per cent from 2012, while Somalis, most of them young men, were among the top five nationalities crossing the Mediterranean during the first six months of 2015. Although much has been written about the rise in migration to Europe and migrant deaths at sea, little is written about the journey migrants take prior to attempting the crossing. We Kissed the Ground is a first-hand account of a young man’s attempt to migrate to Europe from Somaliland and the hardships of the journey through Ethiopia, Sudan and Libya, a journey attempted by many young Somalis and commonly referred to as tahriib.
On Wednesday 29 November 2017, Eye Radio (www.eyeradio.org) and the Rift Valley Institute (www.riftvalley.net) aired the fifth and, for now, final radio show in the South Sudan National Archives radio series, in coordination with the South Sudan Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports and UNESCO, with Norway’s financial support.
The show was hosted by Clement Wani Cirisio and looked at a document preserved through the work of the National Archives, ‘The functions of the leopard-skin chief’, an extract from the draft manual of Nuer customary law commissioned in 1944 by the colonial authorities.
On Wednesday 22 November 2017, Eye Radio (www.eyeradio.org) and the Rift Valley Institute (www.riftvalley.net) aired the fourth radio show about the South Sudan National Archives, in coordination with the South Sudan Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports and UNESCO, with Norway’s financial support.
The show was hosted by Clement Wani Cirisio and looked at an appeal by the peace delegation to the Anya Nya from 1967, a document preserved through the work of the National Archives. The document is an example of the efforts made by the Sudanese government to persuade the Anya Nya forces to surrender and participate in elections scheduled for March of that year.
Eye Radio (www.eyeradio.org) and the Rift Valley Institute (www.riftvalley.net) aired the second radio show about the South Sudan National Archives on Wednesday 8 November 2017, in coordination with the South Sudan Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports and UNESCO, with Norway’s financial support.
This edition looked at an extract of the Gospel of St Mark from a 1952 Bible, translated into Bari and preserved through the work of the National Archives. The extract describes a conversation between Jesus and his disciples on the Mount of Olives in which Jesus is preparing them for the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem.
On Wednesday 15 November 2017, Eye Radio (www.eyeradio.org) and the Rift Valley Institute (www.riftvalley.net) aired the third radio show about the South Sudan National Archives, in coordination with the South Sudan Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports and UNESCO, with Norway’s financial support.
The show was hosted by Rosemary Ochinyi and looked at a document preserved through the work of the National Archives, the illustrated cover of a 1948 instructional health manual titled Pial de Guop, or ‘Good Health’ in Dinka. It was distributed among the Bor Dinka community in what was then known as Upper Nile province.
Eye Radio (www.eyeradio.org) and the Rift Valley Institute (www.riftvalley.net) aired the first of a five-part radio series about the South Sudan National Archives (SSNA) on Wednesday 1 November 2017, in coordination with the South Sudan Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports and UNESCO, with Norway’s financial support. The show’s host, Rosemary Ochinyi, and three South Sudanese panellists discussed a particularly important historical document, The Sentencing of the Torit Mutineers, which has been preserved and catalogued through the work of the Archives.
We Kissed the Ground: A migrant’s journey from Somaliland to the Mediterranean by Rift Valley Institute
International Archives Day with Becu Thomas and Youssef Onyalla by Rift Valley Institute
To charity workers, Dadaab refugee camp is a humanitarian crisis. To the Kenyan government it is an economic burden and a ‘breeding ground for terrorists’. To the Western media, it is a dangerous no-go area. But to its half a million residents seeking sanctuary, it is their last resort.
In May, the Kenyan government announced the closure of the world’s largest refugee camp by November 2016. It subsequently disbanded the Department of Refugee Affairs, the agency tasked with overseeing the camp.
In August, the Kenyan government stated that they would hold back its earlier decision to close the camp until peace was restored in Somalia. Although no one can give an assurance of when this will be, 2018 is the year quoted for the withdrawal of troops from Somalia.
With this crisis being overshadowed by the European refugee and migrant crisis, the question remains: What next for the inhabitants of Dadaab?
On 8 September, the Rift Valley Forum and Amnesty International hosted a panel discussion with representatives from the UNHCR, the Kenyan government and civil society actors working on refugee issues. Ben Rawlence, the author of City of Thorns—an account of daily life inside Dadaab through the stories of nine individuals—joined the panel giving his perspective based on his experience as a researcher in Dadaab.
In 2013, almost half of Africa’s top aid recipients were ruled by authoritarian regimes. Many international donors such as USAID, DFID, the World Bank and the European Commission have had their policies entangled with the agendas of the ruling elites. Development policies are thus shaped with a view to maintain the status quo, compromising the rights and democracy of local citizens. This book raises the question: to what extent are foreign aid programmes actually perpetuating authoritarian rule?
On 9 May 2016, the Rift Valley Forum hosted the launch of Aid and Authoritarianism in Africa, edited by Tobias Hagmann and Filip Reyntjens.
The book highlights the political and moral complexities that emerge from the relationship between foreign aid and autocratic governments in Africa. It brings to light changing donor interests and rhetoric, as well as the impact of foreign aid on military assistance, rural development, electoral processes and domestic politics in Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Cameroon, Mozambique and Angola.
Maxamed Xuseen Geeldoon waa 27 sano jir, dhowr jeer isku dayey inuu u tahriibo Yurub balse ku guuldarraystay. Dhibaato, rafaad badan iyo sannado badan oo ka lumay cimirigiisa ka dib, waxaa uu dib ugu soo laabtay Somaliland isaga oo go’aansaday inuu dhalinyarada ka waaniyo halisaha tahriibka.
Maxamed waxa taariikhdiisa tahriibka oo loogu magacdaray “ Carrada ayaan dhunkanay” ka qoray Machadka Caalamiga ah ee Dooxada Rift buuggaasi oo maanta la daabacay.
Haddaba Sahra Ciidle Nuur ayuu uga warramay dhibaatada uu kala kulmay tahriibka.
Source: http://www.voasomali.com/a/3531450.html?nocache=1
This is an interview by Radio Okapi with Judith Verweijen and Emery Mudinga following the Rift Valley Forum and the Political Settlements Research Programme (PSRP) panel discussion in Goma on 20 September 2016. The discussion aimed to answer questions surrounding the recent fragmentation of the armed group landscape in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo; the effects of armed group presence on local governance; and the influence of local authorities and local conflicts influence on armed mobilization.
The panel provided an opportunity to present the research conclusions of the second phase of the RVI Usalama Project launched in 2015. Entitled ‘Governance in Conflict’, this phase examined the relationship between armed groups and local governance in the eastern Congo.
In July 2011, South Sudan gained independence and became the world’s newest country. Yet just two-and-a-half years after this momentous decision, the country was in the grips of renewed civil war and political strife.
On 8 July 2016, the Rift Valley Institute and the Norwegian Embassy launched South Sudan: The Untold Story from Independence to Civil War, by Hilde F. Johnson.
This book, based on the author's experience as a Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan from July 2011 until July 2014, provides an unparalleled insider’s account of South Sudan’s descent from the celebrations of July 2011 to the outbreak of the conflict in December 2013 and the early phase of the fighting.
Johnson’s access to contacts at the highest levels of government, accompanied by her knowledge of the country and its history, make this a unique eyewitness account of the turbulent first three years of the world’s newest—and yet most fragile—country.
In the light of the current crisis, the current peace agreement in South Sudan, and the political, social and economic impact of the crisis on the region, the question remains: What is the way forward for South Sudan?
On 10 August 2016, the Rift Valley Forum in collaboration with the KBC English Service hosted Chuma Nwokolo at the launch of his book How to spell Naija Vol.2. Chuma Nwokolo is the author of ten books and one of Nigeria’s most prolific writers. His latest completes the collection How to spell Naija in 100 short stories. Set in the present and future, in the diaspora, in urban and small-town Nigeria, and in the author's fictional Waterside community, the stories tackle serious issues of corruption and citizen responsibility with wit and charm, and a caste of characters that include kidnappers, houseboys, bishops and suicide bombers.
On Tuesday 10 May 2016, the Rift Valley Forum together with the Political Settlements Research Programme (PRSP), hosted the launch of a report by Tobias Hagmann on Stabilization in Somalia.
Download report: www.riftvalley.net/publication/stabilization-extraversion-and-political-settlements-somalia
This report highlights the role of external aid in dysfunctional state building efforts in Somalia. Rather than assuming that foreign actors are outside the local, national and political settlements, such actors should rather be seen as an integral part of these processes. Consequently, the power and interests of both Somali and international actors must be taken into consideration in order to understand the shortcomings of stabilization policies.
The author of the report presented its findings followed by a discussion on the current efforts of state building in Somalia, lessons learnt from past efforts and what needs to be done locally and internationally to ensure a successful process of state building in Somalia.
On Friday 15 January 2016, the Rift Valley Forum hosted Gérard Prunier for the Nairobi launch of the book Understanding Contemporary Ethiopia: Monarchy, Revolution and the Legacy of Meles Zenawi, co-edited by Prunier and Éloi Ficquet.
This anthology of essays by noted scholars of Ethiopia's culture, history, politics, and society seeks to transcend the clichés of suffering and visions of a past empire that often colour perspectives on the country. This book presents a measured, detailed and systematic analysis of the powerful forces that have rapidly transformed Ethiopia into a regional power.
RVI Fellow Gérard Prunier is a historian and author of The Rwanda Crisis: History of a Genocide and of Darfur: The Ambiguous Genocide.
The Nairobi Forum, in collaboration with Kwani? and Storymoja, brought Ugandan writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi—whose novel Kintu won the 2013 Kwani? Manuscript Prize—together with Zambian writer and 2015 Caine prize winner, Namwalli Serpell, and Nigerian author and editor, Emmanuel Iduma, for a discussion on historical research and the uses of history in fiction writing. Ngala Chome chaired the event, which took place at the 2015 Storymoja Festival, at the Nairobi National Arboretum. The Nairobi Forum is a sponsor of Storymoja 2015.
On Friday 18 September 2015, the Nairobi Forum hosted Ugandan writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, whose novel Kintu won the 2013 Kwani? Manuscript Prize. The novel follows the adventures of Kintu Kidda and generations of his heirs, telling the story of a family and a nation contending with the burdens of the colonial past while seeking to reconcile tradition with the modern world. Jennifer was joined by Tom Odhiambo, Lecturer in Literature at the University of Nairobi, for a conversation about history, culture and the resurgence of kingdoms in Ugandan politics.
On Saturday 9th May, the Nairobi Forum hosted an evening with renowned Somali author Nuruddin Farah at the offices of the Rift Valley Institute. Nuruddin spoke about Somali cultural losses in the civil war.
Nuruddin is the winner of the Neustadt International Prize for Literature and the Lettre Ulysses Award, and has been nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature several times. His body of work includes two trilogies, Variations on the Theme of an African Dictatorship (1980) and Blood in the Sun (1986). His most recent novel, Crossbones, was published in 2011.
This podcast, made during the 2014 Book Fair, records a conversation between the poet Jack Mapanje and Dr Adan Abokor about their experiences of being imprisoned under the former authoritarian governments in Malawi and Somalia, respectively. They explain how while isolated in their prison cells they developed secret languages that enabled them to communicate with fellow prisoners and to sustain their minds and their spirits. The interview was conducted by Elizabeth Spackman.
The Rift Valley Institute’s Nairobi Forum, in partnership with Storymoja Africa, hosted a panel discussion with Rasna Warah (Kenya), author of War Crimes in Somalia, Michael Walls (UK) of UCL, author of A Somali Nation-State, to discuss Somali history, political transitions and foreign aid at the 2014 Storymoja Festival.
The authors were joined on the panel by Parselelo Kantai (Kenya), investigative journalist and regional editor of the Africa Report, Fatuma Abdulahi (Somalia), founder of the Warya Post, and Neil Wigan, the British High Commissioner to Somalia. The panel was moderated by lawyer Ramsey Beck (USA).
Mohammed Adow discussed his recent documentary, Not Yet Kenyan, which aired on Al Jazeera English Channel on 14 November, at a meeting of the Nairobi Forum. The documentary brings to the fore a divide in Kenyan society, revealing a history of discrimination since independence against ethnic Somalis in North Eastern Kenya.
Born and raised in Garissa County in northeast Kenya, Mohammed Adow witnessed at first hand the political and economic marginalisation of this part of Kenya. For "Not Yet Kenyan" he went back to see how the region and its people had survived and started to prosper, only to find that Kenya's intervention in Somalia and the actions of al-Shabaab are threatening to throw the region into turmoil.
During the meeting RVI fellow Justin Willis, Professor in History at the University of Durham, talked with Mohammed Adow about his experiences and the story behind this documentary. They discussed the issues with Dr Ekuru Aukot, a Constitutional Lawyer, who hails from Turkana in northwest Kenya.
Berouk Mesfin, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), interviews Christopher Clapham, Emeritus Professor at the University of Cambridge, and Lee Cassanelli, Associate Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania, on the topic of a life of research in the Horn of Africa, on the 2013 Rift Valley Institute Horn of Africa Field Course in Jinja, Uganda.
Thousands have died and hundreds of thousands have been displaced as a result of the political crisis in South Sudan. Armed conflict continues as peace talks between government and opposition begin in Addis Ababa. Leading South Sudanese civil society institutions came together in Nairobi to sponsor discussion of the current situation, its historical origins and the prospects for a peaceful resolution. The meeting was organised by the Rift Valley Institute's Nairobi Forum and supported by the Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa.
On 4 October, the RVI Nairobi Forum held a public meeting to discuss the Lamu Port-South Sudan Ethiopia Transport Corridor (LAPSSET), a flagship project of Kenya’s government-sponsored Vision 2030. A panel composed of representatives of government, parliament and civil society discussed the effects that this major project will have on communities in northern Kenya and neighbouring countries. The meeting attracted participation from donors and researchers, representatives of government and the communities affected by the project.
On 25 October 2013, the RVI Nairobi Forum convened a distinguished panel of speakers to reflect on IGAD’s past and future role in Somalia. Ambassador Mahboub Maalim, the Executive Secretary of IGAD, was the keynote speaker. He was joined on the panel by Ambassador Mohamed Ali, Somalia’s Ambassador to Kenya. The meeting was chaired by Jan-Petter Holtendahl, Counsellor for Somali Affairs for the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Nairobi.
On 11 September the RVI Nairobi Forum hosted a discussion about UK and US banks' discontinuation of their services to Somali remittance companies. The occasion was the launch of a report by Oxfam and Adeso Keeping the Lifeline Open: Remittances and Markets in Somalia. The report highlights the positive impact of remittances on Somali livelihoods and assesses the compliance of money transfer operators, and their due-diligence procedures. Speakers at the meeting appealed to Barclays—the last bank to offer such services—to postpone their 30 September deadline for another year. On 30 September, a fortnight later, Barclays postponed the deadline for two weeks.
On 15 June 2013, Miraya FM in Juba broadcast a feature on the process of digitizing documents for the South Sudan National Archives. The project is a collaboration between the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, RVI, UNESCO, UNOPS and the Government of Norway. ‘The documents are important,’ the report says, ‘as they will form part of the foundations of South Sudanese national identity. They trace the cultural, social and political development of the new state.’
In South Sudan, delays in the formulation of a new national constitution have led to growing public concern. My Mother Will Not Come to Juba: South Sudanese Debate the Constitution is the record of a series of public lectures and discussions held at the University of Juba in March 2013. The launch of the report, which is available for free download, featured many of the participants in the original lecture series, including Akolda Ma'an Tier (Chairman of the Constitutional Review Commission), Merekaje Lorna, Leben Moro, Don Samuel, Ben Lou Poggo and Henry Swaka.
On 29 April the Hon. Mohamed Elmi (MP, Tarbaj) presented a paper at the Nairobi Forum on Lessons from the Ministry of Northern Kenya, reflecting on the work of his former Ministry in supporting pastoralism and development in Kenya’s arid and semi arid lands. The former Minister was one of several speakers at a seminar hosted by the Nairobi Forum in collaboration with the Future Agriculture Consortium, to launch the book Pastoralism and Development in Africa: Dynamic Change at the Margins. Other speakers and authors included Jeremy Lind (Institute of Development Studies), Hussein A. Mahmoud (Pwani University), Abdirizak Arale Nunow (Inter-Parliamentary Union, IGAD), Polly Ericksen (ILRI) and Francis Chabari (Kenya Drylands Livestock Development Programme). The proceedings were chaired by Deborah Nightingale (RVI Fellow) and the Hon. Chachu Ganya (MP, North Horr). The speakers illustrated the dynamic changes happening within pastoralism in Kenya, with discussions of innovations in livestock trade, land expropriation, environmental change, and policy initiatives to mitigate recurrent disasters through resilience programmes. This podcast is part 1 of 2.
On 29 April the Hon. Mohamed Elmi (MP, Tarbaj) presented a paper at the Nairobi Forum on Lessons from the Ministry of Northern Kenya, reflecting on the work of his former Ministry in supporting pastoralism and development in Kenya’s arid and semi arid lands. The former Minister was one of several speakers at a seminar hosted by the Nairobi Forum in collaboration with the Future Agriculture Consortium, to launch the book Pastoralism and Development in Africa: Dynamic Change at the Margins. Other speakers and authors included Jeremy Lind (Institute of Development Studies), Hussein A. Mahmoud (Pwani University), Abdirizak Arale Nunow (Inter-Parliamentary Union, IGAD), Polly Ericksen (ILRI) and Francis Chabari (Kenya Drylands Livestock Development Programme). The proceedings were chaired by Deborah Nightingale (RVI Fellow) and the Hon. Chachu Ganya (MP, North Horr). The speakers illustrated the dynamic changes happening within pastoralism in Kenya, with discussions of innovations in livestock trade, land expropriation, environmental change, and policy initiatives to mitigate recurrent disasters through resilience programmes. This podcast is part 2 of 2.
The Nairobi Forum and the British Institute in Eastern Africa co-hosted the launch of a special Somalia edition of the Journal of Eastern African Studies on 19 April 2013. The meeting, entitled ‘Continuities and change: Social, political and economic dynamics in Somalia since 1991’, examined the strengths and weaknesses of hybrid political structures, the roles of local authorities, and the importance that Somalis in Kenya play in the reconstruction of Somalia. Journal authors present included Markus Hoehne (Max Planck Institute), Jutta Bakonyi (University of Durham) and Jason Mosley (University of Oxford). Other participants included Mohamed Abshir ‘Waldo’, Ibrahim Farah (University of Nairobi), Marleen Renders, author of Consider Somaliland: State-building with Traditional Leaders and Institutions, Fouzia Musse, Zamzam Abdi Billow (CARE) and Cedric Barnes (International Crisis Group). This is part 3 of 3 of the podcast.
The Nairobi Forum and the British Institute in Eastern Africa co-hosted the launch of a special Somalia edition of the Journal of Eastern African Studies on 19 April 2013. The meeting, entitled ‘Continuities and change: Social, political and economic dynamics in Somalia since 1991’, examined the strengths and weaknesses of hybrid political structures, the roles of local authorities, and the importance that Somalis in Kenya play in the reconstruction of Somalia. Journal authors present included Markus Hoehne (Max Planck Institute), Jutta Bakonyi (University of Durham) and Jason Mosley (University of Oxford). Other participants included Mohamed Abshir ‘Waldo’, Ibrahim Farah (University of Nairobi), Marleen Renders, author of Consider Somaliland: State-building with Traditional Leaders and Institutions, Fouzia Musse, Zamzam Abdi Billow (CARE) and Cedric Barnes (International Crisis Group). This is part 2 of 3 of the podcast.
The Nairobi Forum and the British Institute in Eastern Africa co-hosted the launch of a special Somalia edition of the Journal of Eastern African Studies on 19 April 2013. The meeting, entitled ‘Continuities and change: Social, political and economic dynamics in Somalia since 1991’, examined the strengths and weaknesses of hybrid political structures, the roles of local authorities, and the importance that Somalis in Kenya play in the reconstruction of Somalia. Journal authors present included Markus Hoehne (Max Planck Institute), Jutta Bakonyi (University of Durham) and Jason Mosley (University of Oxford). Other participants included Mohamed Abshir ‘Waldo’, Ibrahim Farah (University of Nairobi), Marleen Renders, author of Consider Somaliland: State-building with Traditional Leaders and Institutions, Fouzia Musse, Zamzam Abdi Billow (CARE) and Cedric Barnes (International Crisis Group). This is part 1 of 3 of the podcast.
On 8 March 2013, the third and final RVI Juba Lecture, held in collaboration with the Centre for Peace and Development Studies at the University of Juba, took place at the university’s New Hall. The keynote speech on the theme of ‘Rights and Responsibilities’ was given by David Deng, Research Director at the South Sudan Law Society. A podcast of the speech is available below, introduced by the event chair, Jacob Akol, Chairman of the Association for Media Development in South Sudan. Additional comments were made by panellists Merekaje Lorna, Secretary-General of the South Sudan Democratic Engagement Monitoring and Observation Programme, Ambrose Riiny Thiik, the former Chief Justice of South Sudan, and Gabriel Shadar of Miraya FM.
On 7 March 2013, the second in a series of three RVI Juba Lectures, held in collaboration with the Centre for Peace and Development Studies at the University of Juba, took place at the university’s New Hall. The keynote speech on the theme of ‘Equality and Representation’ was given by Jacob Akol, Chairman of the Association for Media Development in South Sudan. The event chair, Joanna Oyediran of the Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa, introduced additional comments from Paleki Matthew Obur, Director of the South Sudan Women’s Empowerment Network, Ben Poggo of the Ministry of General Education and Instruction, and David Deng, Research Director at the South Sudan Law Society.
On 6 March 2013, the first in a series of three RVI Juba Lectures, held in collaboration with the Centre for Peace and Development Studies at the University of Juba, took place at the university’s New Hall. The keynote speech on the theme ‘Consulting the Nation’ was given by Professor Akolda Tier, chair of the South Sudan Constitutional Review Commission. The professor responded to comments from a panel that included Zacharia Diing Akol, Director of Training at the Sudd Institute, Henry Swaka, Vice Chair of the South Sudan Civil Society Alliance, and Marcia Dawes of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, under the chairmanship of RVI co-founder Jok Madut Jok, Executive Director of the Sudd Institute.
On 22 February 2013, the Rift Valley Institute's Nairobi Forum hosted an event entitled ‘Somalia's Jubaland: Past, present and potential futures’. Jubaland has been one of the most heavily fought over regions of Somalia—but with its perennial river, fertile soils and the port city of Kismayo it has the potential to be one of Somalia’s most productive regions. The social bonds that bind and divide populations across the borders of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia, give this region a particularly important regional significance. This has been made abundantly clear by the presence of Kenyan and Ethiopian military forces in the region. The Nairobi Forum event was chaired by RVI Fellow Cedric Barnes, of the International Crisis Group.
Jason Stearns, director of RVI's Usalama Project, is interviewed by Radio France Internationale about the Peace, Security, and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region, signed in Addis Ababa on Sunday 24 February 2013, and its implications for the DRC crisis.
Featured on the RVI Podcast with permission from Radio France Internationale. Original source: http://www.rfi.fr/emission/20130224-jason-stearns-specialiste-rdc-directeur-programme-oussalama
On the 15th of February 2013, the RVI’s Nairobi Forum hosted the launch of a report by the Mogadishu-based think tank, the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS), entitled ‘Hasty Repatriation: Kenya's attempt to send Somali refugees home’. The research was undertaken in late 2012, after the Kenyan government called for Somali refugees to assemble in refugee camps and return to Somalia. With Somali refugees in Kenya forming one of the largest refugee populations in world, HIPS sought to examine implications of this new policy both for Somali refugees and for Somalia itself. The report's author, Anab Ismail Nur, joined H.E. Mohamed Ali, Somalia's Ambassador to Kenya, and Jacqueline Parlevliet of UNHCR – in a discussion chaired by Laetitia Bader of Human Rights Watch.
H. E. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of Somalia’s Federal Government, has stressed that restoration of security is his key priority. Speaking to RVI Fellow Sally Healy during an official visit to London for talks with the British government, he said that, in the short term, ‘the roads, the communities, and the markets’ should be made safe. In the long term, he added, the Somali state should control ‘the whole country, whether it’s the land, the sea, or the air: that is the ultimate security that we are seeking’. The president also discussed dialogue with al-Shabaab, saying that his government’s doors were ‘open for those who want to denounce violence and get back to the mainstream of society’. But he emphasized: ‘We have nothing to do with the foreign elements within al-Shabaab’. On the presence of outside military forces, he said: ‘This is not a sustainable project … We are expecting that old practices will be changed. We are the Somali government and we determine the type of assistance we want, and where and when we want it.’ On his country’s political future, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud stated: ‘As President of Somalia, I will be working to make Somalia a federal state.’ ‘What kind of federalism,’ he added, ‘how many federal states, the level of power-sharing between the centre and the peripheries, all these are discussions that will happen soon.’
The Somali Kenyan MP Yusuf Hassan was a conspicuous absence at a discussion on the role of art and literature in social reconstruction in the Horn of Africa, which took place on 10 December 2012 in Nairobi. The MP was injured by shrapnel in an explosion in his Kamukunji constituency in Eastleigh, a largely Somali community in the Kenyan capital, on 7 December. His place as chair of the event, co-hosted by Kwani Trust, a Kenyan literary network, and the RVI Nairobi Forum, was filled at short notice by the journalist Katrina Manson, who subsequently wrote about the event in the Financial Times. A distinguished panel of writers from across the region included the short story writer Said Jama Hussein; Ayan Mahamoud, managing director of KAYD Somali Arts and Culture, which helps put on the Hargeisa International Book Fair; the columnist Ahmed Abbas; the Ethiopian playwright Meaza Worku; and Joseph Eluzai, a South Sudanese writer of fiction, poems, and short stories.
On 17 December 2012, Jason Stearns, director of the RVI Usalama Project, discussed the capture of Goma by the M23 rebel group and the escalation of violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) at a public event in London. Organized by the Africa Programme at Chatham House, in association with RVI, the event was entitled ‘M23 and the Challenges to Peace in the Eastern DRC’. The panel included Ben Shepherd, associate fellow at Chatham House and a former Director of Studies on the RVI Great Lakes Course, and Bronwen Manby of the Africa Governance Monitoring and Advocacy Project (AfriMAP). The event included a vigorous Q&A session, featured in this podcast, involving senior diplomats from the Great Lakes region. The audio recording was made by Chatham House and is also available at http://www.chathamhouse.org/events/view/187555.
"The capture of Goma by the M23 rebel group marks an alarming escalation in the crisis facing the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Confusion over the nature and agenda of the rebel group, as well as other regional actors, makes analysis - let alone policy responses - difficult. This roundtable will seek to help clarify what is known about the situation, and offer some practical suggestions for what kind of responses might be most appropriate, or indeed counterproductive." - Chatham House
On 4 December 2012, the RVI's Nairobi Forum presented the assessments of five members of the International Election Observer team who monitored district elections in the Republic of Somaliland on 28 November. They were the fifth democratic elections held in Somaliland since 2002 and followed several weeks of campaigning. The observers presenting their findings at the event, held at the British Institute in Eastern Africa, were Ayan Mahamoud of the Kayd Organisation, Steve Kibble of Progressio, Quman Akli of Somaliland Focus, RVI Senior Researcher Aly Verjee, and RVI Horn of Africa and East Africa Regional Director Mark Bradbury, who chaired the event. The audience included representatives from the Australian, Norwegian, Swedish, Dutch and Danish embassies in Nairobi. A 30-minute podcast of the event is available.
More than two hundred people attended 'A Somali Spring?', the first event of the RVI's Nairobi Forum on 11 October 2012. A 44-minute podcast featuring the highlights of the discussion between Kenneth Menkhaus, Jabril Abdulle, Amal Ismail, and Matt Bryden can be downloaded here or streamed below. The panellists discussed current developments in Somalia and the country's prospects following the election of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. The RVI's Nairobi Forum for Research, Policy and Local Knowledge is a continuing programme that brings together researchers, policy-makers, government officials, and activists concerned with current issues in Eastern and Central Africa.