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2. Humanitarian Need and Displacement in South Sudan
- Author:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Publication Date:
- 03-2017
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- A spike in political violence since mid-2016 has caused the worst humanitarian crisis in South Sudan since its decades-long civil war with Sudan.
- Topic:
- Political Violence, Civil War, Humanitarian Aid, and Displacement
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Sudan, East Africa, South Sudan, and Central Africa
3. Africa's Information Revolution: Implications for Crime, Policing, and Citizen Security
- Author:
- Steven Livingston
- Publication Date:
- 11-2013
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Violent crime represents the most immediate threat to the personal security of most Africans. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 36 percent of all homicides globally occur in Africa. With 17 deaths per 100,000, the homicide rate in Africa is double the global average. Rates of robberies and rape in Africa also exceed global norms. The problem is worse in urban areas, with many of Africa's urban-dwellers “often” worrying about crime.
- Topic:
- Political Violence, Crime, Fragile/Failed State, and Law Enforcement
- Political Geography:
- Africa and United Nations
4. Mitigating Radicalism in Northern Nigeria
- Author:
- Michael Olufemi Sodipo
- Publication Date:
- 08-2013
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Northern Nigeria has been the locus of an upsurge in youth radicalization and virulent militant Islamist groups in Nigeria since 2009. Nigeria's ranking on the Global Terrorism Index rose from 16 th out of 158 countries in 2008 to 6 th (tied with Somalia) by the end of 2011. There were 168 officially recorded terrorist attacks in 2011 alone. Bombings across the northeast prompted President Goodluck Jonathan in May 2013 to declare a state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe States. Many Nigerians have come to question whether the country is on the brink of a civil war.
- Topic:
- Security, Political Violence, Economics, Islam, and Peacekeeping
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Nigeria, Somalia, Yobe State, Borno State, and Adamawa State
5. Boko Haram's Evolving Threat
- Author:
- J. Peter Pham
- Publication Date:
- 04-2012
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- The Nigerian militant Islamist group Boko Haram has grown increasingly virulent since late 2010, reflecting a major transformation in its capacity, tactics, and ideology. There are indications of expanding links between Boko Haram and international Islamist terrorist organizations. Support for Boko Haram among some of northern Nigeria's marginalized Muslim communities suggests that security actions alone will be insufficient to quell the instability.
- Topic:
- Political Violence, Islam, Terrorism, Armed Struggle, and Insurgency
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Nigeria
6. Alternative Dispute Resolution in Africa: Preventing Conflict and Enhancing Stability
- Author:
- Ernest Uwazie
- Publication Date:
- 11-2011
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Backlogged court dockets in Africa, often requiring claimants to wait years, are common. The resulting perception that justice cannot be attained through official channels is a potential catalyst for intergroup violence and political instability. Alternative Dispute Resolution is an increasingly popular complement to official legal channels to resolve less serious disputes in a timely manner through mediation while enhancing claimants' sense of justice. Establishing legislation supporting Alternative Dispute Resolution as well as broadening the number and caliber of mediators can expedite the adoption of this mechanism.
- Topic:
- Conflict Prevention, Political Violence, and Law
- Political Geography:
- Africa
7. Stress-Testing South Africa: The Tenuous Foundations of One of Africa's Stable States
- Author:
- Assis Malaquias
- Publication Date:
- 07-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy in 1994 was expected to usher in a new era of peace, stability, and accelerated development. However, despite widespread optimism, political violence has persisted. Although a fraction of that experienced under apartheid, levels of political violence are worsening and indicative of the country's potential fragility. They also map out the fault lines along which South Africa may yet stumble.
- Topic:
- Political Violence, Apartheid, Democratization, and Poverty
- Political Geography:
- Africa
8. Optimizing Africa's Security Force Structures
- Author:
- Helmoed Heitman
- Publication Date:
- 06-2011
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- There is much happening in Africa that is positive— economically, socially, and politically. But a large share of the continent remains fragile, putting those gains at risk. The most pressing challenges facing many African states are paramilitary threats— threats that are beyond the ability of most police forces and frequently transcend national borders. Organized crime, rural banditry, piracy, local warlords, guerrillas, ethnic and religious violence, and extremist Islamist groups are just a few of an array of such threats.
- Topic:
- Security, Political Violence, Crime, Ethnic Conflict, Poverty, Insurgency, and Piracy
- Political Geography:
- Africa
9. Africa's Evolving Infosystems: A Pathway to Security and Stability
- Author:
- Steven Livingston
- Publication Date:
- 03-2011
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Political instability and violence in Africa are often the products of rumor and misinformation. Narrow interests have used politically biased newspapers and radio programming to spread disinformation and champion politically divisive causes. Meanwhile, reasonable opposition voices have been kept silent and shuttered from public life, often by repressive, even violent means. This remains a serious concern across Africa.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Security, Political Violence, and Science and Technology
- Political Geography:
- Africa
10. Misinterpreting Ethnic Conflicts in Africa
- Author:
- Clement Mweyang Aapengnuo
- Publication Date:
- 04-2010
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Ethnicity is typically not the driving force of African conflicts but a lever used by political leaders to mobilize supporters in pursuit of power, wealth, and resources. Recognizing that ethnicity is a tool and not the driver of intergroup conflict should refocus our conflict mitigation efforts to the political triggers of conflict. Ethnic thinking and mobilization generally emerge from inequitable access to power and resources and not from an intrinsic hatred. Over the medium to long term, defusing the potency of ethnicity for political ends requires a systematic civic education strategy that helps build a common national identity, which so many African countries still lack.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Political Violence, Ethnic Conflict, Nationalism, and Ethnic Government
- Political Geography:
- Africa
11. Nonstate Policing: Expanding the Scope for Tackling Africa's Urban Violence
- Author:
- Bruce Baker
- Publication Date:
- 09-2010
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Violent crime in Africa's cities is endemic and in many places worsening. Africa as a whole has a homicide rate of 20 per 100,000 (in Europe it is 5.4, in North America 6.5, and in South America 25.9). The problem is particularly severe in some urban areas. Kinshasa's homicide rate is estimated to be as high as 112 homicides per 100,000. The Nigerian police have recorded consistently rising rates of murder and at - tempted murder over the last 20 years. Rates of armed robbery in Africa are also very high. In Nairobi, 37 percent of residents reported being victims. The rate is 27 percent in some Mozambican cities and 21 percent in the Democratic Republic of the Congo(DRC).
- Topic:
- Conflict Prevention, Political Violence, Civil Society, and Crime
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Europe, and Nairobi