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Between August and November 2019, IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) conducted Village Assessment Survey (VAS) in Rubkona, Wau and Bor South Counties assessing a total of 63 bomas (13 in Bor South, 11 in Rubkona and 39 in Wau) and carrying key informant interviews at 191 educational facilities and 42 health facilities. In addition to this, 1,147 facilities and services including water points, markets, fishing areas, etc. were also mapped. This dataset contains data collected…

South Sudan, which separated from Sudan in 2011 after nearly 40 years of civil war, was embroiled in a new devastating conflict at the end of 2013. This happened when political disputes coupled with preexisting ethnic and political fault lines became brutal. This conflict has mostly targeted civilians and most often, ethnic groups, and warring parties have been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The conflict has resulted in a major humanitarian crisis,…

Looking through the lens of disputes and their resolution, this article examines the efforts undertaken by refugees to guarantee peaceful coexistence within and around settlements in northern Uganda. Based on extensive fieldwork, the authors examine which disputes occur within and around the settlements and which actors intervene to mediate and solve them. They identify a hierarchy among the different formal and informal actors involved in the resolution of disputes and show how refugee leaders operate…

Civil wars are a greater source of violence than any other type of conflict, yet little is known about one of the key determinants of civil war peace settlement success: civilian support. The authors evaluate how a core component of nearly all peace settlements, leader endorsements, affects public support. The authors predict that individuals in conflict settings will view settlements endorsed by outgroup leaders as less trustworthy and that they will become less supportive. The…

Statutory oversight mechanisms for South Sudan’s intelligence service are weak and ineffective. The weakness of these mechanisms is directly related to the sense of security that the regime experiences. Internal threats facing the regime after South Sudan’s independence have resulted in an increase in the autonomy and influence of the National Security Service to counter opposition. Democratic principles, such as independent legislative oversight and respect for human rights have become subordinate to the political survival…

Previous research has primarily focused on the EU’s high-profile involvement as direct mediator in peace negotiations. Conversely, less attention has been devoted to the EU’s support to third parties’ mediation efforts, which is a significant component of its mediation activities. Addressing this research gap, this article develops a conceptual framework for the systematic analysis of EU mediation support, identifying key mediation support techniques and the conditions for their success. In terms of mediation support techniques,…

This article discusses a selection of state emblems, national symbols and national identity in Southern Sudan. The emblems and symbols are used to provide meaning to a nation in the making and serve as pillars for common national identification to guide the formation of national identity. In essence, they represent the top-down process of politically dominant societal actors’ attempt to effect nation building by seeking to promote their desired type of national identity. Drawing on…

Displaced Tastes is a research project run by the Rift Valley Institute in partnership with the Catholic University of South Sudan under the X-Border Local Research Network. The project examines the changing tastes for food in South Sudan in the context of the country’s economic transition and place in the regional, cross-border economy of grain. In this piece, Elizabeth Nyibol describes the lifestory of her aunt, Mary Ajok Wetkwuot, who throughout her life has demonstrated…

​This article assesses when diversity becomes a curse in Africa. The review of literature on the causation of civil wars shows gaps, weaknesses and lack of holistic framework of analysis. It is argued in this article that the risk of violent conflict is better explained in Africa by absence of social contract as a manifestation of governance deficit rather than the presence of grievances and greed. Recognizing these gaps, this article uses the heuristic social…

This British Academy/Leverhulme-funded research investigated the health and justice service responses to the needs of South Sudanese refugees living in refugee settlements in Northern Uganda who had been subjected to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and torture. It involved the collection and thematic analysis of the narratives of 20 men and 41 women who were refugee survivors of SGBV and torture, including their experiences in South Sudan, their journeys to Uganda and experiences in refugee…

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