1. |
- Abdi, Cawo, M.
(author)
-
A gendered perspective on the impact of conflict in the Horn of Africa
- 2011
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This Policy Note focuses on the gendered consequences of the militarisation of the Horn of Africa. Despite being in different ‘moments’ of conflict, the countries of this region share features of extreme social, economic and political violence, which impact negatively on their citizens. Protracted refugee and refugee-like conditions, extreme disinvestment in social programmes, increasing militarisation and political repression adversely affect women, thereby further entrenching gender disparities. Concerted national and international efforts and resources should support local democratic initiatives to find political solutions to these protracted conflicts and advance the struggle against sexual and gender-based violence and discrimination.
|
|
2. |
- Adama, Onyanta
(author)
-
Privatising services as if people matter : Solid waste management in Abuja, Nigeria
- 2012
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- There is an overwhelming focus on the state and the private sector in the language and practice of privatisation, even though it calls for a tripartite arrangement that includes the people. A major consequence is the failure to comprehend and assess fully the important role of the people. While the people have a major part in supporting privatisation through payment of user charges, they are not often seen as key partners by city governments in Africa. Public participation has important implications for finance and cost recovery. Thus a people-centred approach to privatisation in which the users of services are consulted and involved in decision-making processes is crucial to the emergence of sustainable solid waste management systems in African cities. This study provides useful insights into the complexity of public participation in the context of privatisation of solid waste services and offers policy guidelines relevant to the major stakeholders.
|
|
3. |
- Adolfo, Eldridge Vigil
(author)
-
Angola's Sustainable Growth and Regional Role beyond the Elections
- 2012
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Angola’s economic boom averaging about 17 per cent per annum, is centred on its extractive oil industry and has made Angola one of the fastest growing economies in sub-Saharan Africa and the world. With national peace providing stability and a strong military to negotiate regional threats, Angola is expected to consolidate its position as a regional power commensurate with its economic and military might. However, Angola faces challenges in the political, social, economic, governance, security and foreign policy arenas. It will also have to contend with election-related violence. While a bright medium-term future is in prospect for Angola, the country will have to negotiate and overcome these challenges to sustain its long-term peaceful development.
|
|
4. |
- Adolfo, Eldridge Vigil, et al.
(author)
-
Electoral Violence in Africa
- 2012
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- In the time period 2012–2013, over 20 national elections and two constitutional referendums are scheduled in Africa. In several of these elections, violence is anticipated to play a prominent role. There is great urgency to support the establishment of effective and legitimate electoral institutions and electoral frameworks; institute reforms aimed at lowering the stakes of elections; encourage the devolution of powers; improve the socio-economic standing of the populace; and devise strategies to prevent and manage electoral violence.
|
|
5. |
- Ahonsi, Babatunde A.
(author)
-
Towards More Informed Responses to Gender Violence and HIV/AIDS in Post-Conflict West African Settings
- 2010
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The evidence is incontrovertible that Liberia (with its two civil wars, 1989-97 and 2000-03) and Sierra Leone (with its 1991-2001 war) have emerged from two of the most inhuman, ferocious and cruel conflicts in the post-Cold war era. The scale of destruction, rape, mayhem, arson and torture perpetrated during these wars was among the greatest in Africa’s postcolonial history. Women, especially adolescents and young adults, were exposed to extreme sexual brutality at a time when a growing heterosexually-driven HIV pandemic was occurring in the West African sub-region. Both countries also experienced an economic and social collapse that resulted in human development indicators on employment, income, health, education, women’s status and child well-being that are among the lowest in the world. Protracted armed conflicts, as witnessed in Liberia and Sierra Leone and beyond, expose women and girls to unprecedented levels and forms of sexual violence. Moreover, the expectation that the transition from war to peace will lead to significantly reduced sexual violence against women (SVAW) is often disappointed. Instead, post-conflict transitions tend to produce a change in the predominant forms of sexual violence and the profile of its perpetrators. The extended and interlinked conflicts in these neighbouring countries relate at a fundamental level to the persistent denial of citizenship rights to particular population sub-groups over several decades. Within such landscapes of severe social, economic and political marginalization and deprivation, women and girls were bound to suffer more than men and boys during and after the wars as a result of long-established and deeply entrenched patriarchal structures and ideologies in both countries. The persistence of SVAW during post-conflict transitions tends to increase the risk of HIV infection among younger women relative to the phase of armed conflict. A key causal factor is men’s highly exploitative, transactional and cross-generational multiple sexual activities. Thus far, the dominant responses to this complex of issues in post-conflict West Africa have lacked a nuanced understanding of the underlying drivers of sexual violence and its intersections with women’s higher risk of HIV infection.The policy responses to the challenges of post-conflict reconstruction and peace-building in West Africa have generally focused more on traditional security, physical infrastructurere building and economic revitalization issues than on such highly gendered human security concerns as sexual violence and violations of reproductive rights. Left unaddressed, these persisting or worsening human security challenges, affecting at least half their populations, make sustainable peace and development in post-conflict Liberia and Sierra Leone nearly impossible.
|
|
6. |
- Arkhangelskaya, Alexandra A.
(author)
-
India, Brazil and South Africa Dialogue Forum: A Bridge between Three Continents : Challenges, achievements and policy options
- 2010
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) Dialogue Forum is a trilateral development initiative to promote South-South cooperation and exchange. The forum was launched with the adoptionof the Brasília Declaration in June 2003. Each of the three countries has ambitions to play a leading role in regional and global affairs. The role of the Group of Twenty (G20) in respondingto the global financial crisis reflects growing acceptance of IBSA’s emerging position by the world’s established powers. An analysis of IBSA as a rising global power bloc is therefore critical to understanding the new dimensions of South-South relations, particularly in a post-Cold War world. This policy note addresses IBSA’s framework, principles, achievements and challenges in Africa’s development perspective.
|
|
7. |
- Benton, Adia
(author)
-
Ebola exhausts health systems : more resources are needed
- 2014
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Epidemics and institutional responses to them reveal the strengths and weaknesses of health systems. They also often engender and reflect existing political, economic and social tensions whenever and wherever they occur. This policy note outlines some of acute and chronic political and social conditions that have facilitated transmission and continue to pose a challenge for community and government responses to Ebola. It also highlights the significance of building health systems to avert and address future health crises.
|
|
8. |
- Bereketeab, Redie
(author)
-
Post-Secession State-Building and Reconstruction : Somaliland, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan
- 2013
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- State-building refers to the processes undertaken by new states, while reconstitution refers to the rearrangement of an existing state following either secession or collapse. Somaliland and South Sudan are involved in process of state-building, while Sudan and Somalia are engaged in state reconstitution. Three distinctive models of state-building are taking place in the four countries. This Policy Note analyses the interlinked yet distinct process of state building.
|
|
9. |
- Bereketeab, Redie
(author)
-
Self-determination and secession : A 21st Century Challenge to the Post-colonial State in Africa
- 2012
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Two approaches have characterised analysis of the postcolonial state in Africa. One emphasises the territorial integrity of the postcolonial state, with inherited colonial borders being viewed as sacrosanct and state-centred rights being given primacy. The other questions the sacrosanctity of colonial borders and seeks to promote the primacy of people-centred rights. The increasing frequency in recent years of quests for self-determination and secession in Africa poses an existential challenge to the postcolonial state on that continent. This Policy Note addresses this emerging trend.
|
|
10. |
- Beyene, Atakilte
(author)
-
Costly not to consider local resistance : Advice on agricultural investments in Africa
- 2013
-
Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Failures in considering and properly addressing local resistance have become costly for both the local people and the investors. Land acquisition policies need to be accompanied by mechanisms that address local grievances and conflicts. These aspects are crucial not only to alleviate unjust practices, but also to enhance confidence of investors and performance of the investments.
|
|