Rift Valley Institute

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 inst

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

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 yout

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.

Political Transition in Somalia - Q and A by Rift Valley Institute

Political Transition In Somalia - Panel by Rift Valley Institute

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. Wit

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

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 be

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 ide

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 ch

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 fin