Africa

International Alert recently launched a new publication series, part of the project ‘Strengthening the Economic Dimensions of Peacebuilding’.

International Alert–Uganda recently launched Contributing to a Peace Economy in Northern Uganda: A Guide for Investors, a report that provides information and advice for investors seeking to operate in northern Uganda in order to assist them in maximising profits while ensuring that they contribute to the peace and development of the region. Taking in consideration the sensitivities around investments in northern Uganda, the guide identifies how these can be conflict-sensitive and therefore promote peaceful economic recovery.

International Alert recently brought together in Gbarnga, Liberia, members of the traditional and formal justice communities to share experiences and expertise in order to improve access to justice for female victims of sexual violence, including both women and girls.

Civil society and government representatives from Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Burundi recently gathered in Freetown for training on developing gender-sensitive indicators for the consolidation of peacebuilding programmes. Participants also attended a roundtable discussion on the development of National Action Plans (NAPs) for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.

A new report examining the potential of Uganda’s newly discovered oil reserves was released this month by International Alert in Uganda. The findings reveal that the country has a unique opportunity to harness the power of oil for peace and development.

The report was launched at an event in central Kampala attended by leaders of civil society, media and districts, oil representatives, parliamentarians and the Minister for Oil of the Government of Uganda, Hon. Peter Lokeris.

As part of the Human Security Project, International Alert Guinea recently held a series of workshops in the town of N’zerekore, in Guinea’s forest region, aimed at reducing sexual violence against women and improving access to justice for women and girl victims.

International Alert Burundi recently carried out a study on women’s perceptions of security as part of its programme aimed at supporting local women’s organisations for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security.

Last month, International Alert conducted a week long communication training course for local peacebuilding organisations active in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The training took place against a backdrop of renewed fighting and multiple atrocities having been reported on all sides.

Local organisations taking part in the training were long term partners of the Life and Peace Institute, which is one of our partners in Bukavu, South Kivu province.

This article by Alert's Director of Programmes Phil Vernon is a reply to Oliver Richmond’s ‘Liberal Peace Transitions' for Open Democracy.

International Alert supports a series of small post-conflict initiatives in Burundi. And some of the values that motivate these are also dear to the liberal hearts of the international community.

In Liberia, the process of recovery from war includes encouraging both ex-combatants and former IDPs to return to their place of origin and resume their lives there. There are many difficulties, not least the reluctance of some excombatants to go and to stay, and the reluctance of some communities to accept them back.

Cette étude examine l’accès, l’utilisation et la gestion des terres et leurs rapports avec les causes premières de conflit au Nord- et Sud-Kivu et en Ituri. Elle a pour objectif de mettre en évidence

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Informal mining and illicit trading of minerals has long been associated with violent conflicts in the Kivu provinces of eastern Congo. Coltan from the Kivus became particularly well known around the world at the turn of the century because of its use in the manufacture of mobile phones. Gold, which has soared in value as a result of the global financial crisis, also comes in significant quantities from these provinces and the adjacent district of Ituri. The sites in the Kivus and Ituri are now well known and have been mapped.

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Despite notable positive developments in many post-conflict countries in Africa, women’s representation in the parliaments of Liberia and Sierra Leone remains low and elections are still a considerable source of tension. This paper draws on local views to provide a largely qualitative assessment of the current state of women’s political participation in the two countries ahead of their forthcoming elections. It initially identifies the expanding opportunities for women that have emerged since conflict ended and shows how accompanying trends affect their greater participation.

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This study identifies disputed control over land as a root cause of conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The report focuses on conflicts between customary and state-run land tenure systems, as well as claims by some communities to “indigenous” status which are used to relegate others to “migrant” or “foreigner” status. Waves of population displacement have created overlapping claims to land, and an ongoing process of refugee return is currently increasing tensions over these claims in parts of Eastern DRC.

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As the people of Guinea were preparing to go to the polls to cast their vote to elect their president on 27th June 2010, the West Africa programme in collaboration with the Mediation Support Project – a joint venture between swisspeace and the Center for Security Studies (ETH-Zurich) – ran four mediation training workshops during May 2010 in N’zérékoré, Conakry, Labe and Kankan.