Rift Valley Institute

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RVI Nairobi Forum - Pastoralism and Development in Africa - Part 2 May 13, 2013

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On 29 April the Hon. Mohamed Elmi (MP, Tarbaj) presented a paper at the Nairobi Forum on Lessons from the Ministry of Northern Kenya, reflecting on the work of his former Ministry in supporting pastoralism and development in Kenya’s arid and semi arid lands. The former Minister was one of several speakers at a seminar hosted by the Nairobi Forum in collaboration with the Future Agriculture Consortium, to launch the book Pastoralism and Development in Africa: Dynamic Change at the Margins. Other speakers and authors included Jeremy Lind (Institute of Development Studies), Hussein A. Mahmoud (Pwani University), Abdirizak Arale Nunow (Inter-Parliamentary Union, IGAD), Polly Ericksen (ILRI) and Francis Chabari (Kenya Drylands Livestock Development Programme). The proceedings were chaired by Deborah Nightingale (RVI Fellow) and the Hon. Chachu Ganya (MP, North Horr). The speakers illustrated the dynamic changes happening within pastoralism in Kenya, with discussions of innovations in livestock trade, land expropriation, environmental change, and policy initiatives to mitigate recurrent disasters through resilience programmes. This podcast is part 2 of 2.

RVI Nairobi Forum – Continuities and Change - Part 3 May 07, 2013

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The Nairobi Forum and the British Institute in Eastern Africa co-hosted the launch of a special Somalia edition of the Journal of Eastern African Studies on 19 April 2013. The meeting, entitled ‘Continuities and change: Social, political and economic dynamics in Somalia since 1991’, examined the strengths and weaknesses of hybrid political structures, the roles of local authorities, and the importance that Somalis in Kenya play in the reconstruction of Somalia. Journal authors present included Markus Hoehne (Max Planck Institute), Jutta Bakonyi (University of Durham) and Jason Mosley (University of Oxford). Other participants included Mohamed Abshir ‘Waldo’, Ibrahim Farah (University of Nairobi), Marleen Renders, author of Consider Somaliland: State-building with Traditional Leaders and Institutions, Fouzia Musse, Zamzam Abdi Billow (CARE) and Cedric Barnes (International Crisis Group). This is part 3 of 3 of the podcast.

RVI Nairobi Forum – Continuities and Change - Part 2 May 02, 2013

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RVI Nairobi Forum – Continuities and Change - Part 1 Apr 29, 2013

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RVI - Juba Lecture Series 2013 - 3 Mar 09, 2013

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On 8 March 2013, the third and final RVI Juba Lecture, held in collaboration with the Centre for Peace and Development Studies at the University of Juba, took place at the university’s New Hall. The keynote speech on the theme of ‘Rights and Responsibilities’ was given by David Deng, Research Director at the South Sudan Law Society. A podcast of the speech is available below, introduced by the event chair, Jacob Akol, Chairman of the Association for Media Development in South Sudan. Additional comments were made by panellists Merekaje Lorna, Secretary-General of the South Sudan Democratic Engagement Monitoring and Observation Programme, Ambrose Riiny Thiik, the former Chief Justice of South Sudan, and Gabriel Shadar of Miraya FM.

RVI - Juba Lecture Series 2013 - 2 Mar 08, 2013

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On 7 March 2013, the second in a series of three RVI Juba Lectures, held in collaboration with the Centre for Peace and Development Studies at the University of Juba, took place at the university’s New Hall. The keynote speech on the theme of ‘Equality and Representation’ was given by Jacob Akol, Chairman of the Association for Media Development in South Sudan. The event chair, Joanna Oyediran of the Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa, introduced additional comments from Paleki Matthew Obur, Director of the South Sudan Women’s Empowerment Network, Ben Poggo of the Ministry of General Education and Instruction, and David Deng, Research Director at the South Sudan Law Society.

RVI - Juba Lecture Series 2013 - 1 Mar 07, 2013

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On 6 March 2013, the first in a series of three RVI Juba Lectures, held in collaboration with the Centre for Peace and Development Studies at the University of Juba, took place at the university’s New Hall. The keynote speech on the theme ‘Consulting the Nation’ was given by Professor Akolda Tier, chair of the South Sudan Constitutional Review Commission. The professor responded to comments from a panel that included Zacharia Diing Akol, Director of Training at the Sudd Institute, Henry Swaka, Vice Chair of the South Sudan Civil Society Alliance, and Marcia Dawes of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, under the chairmanship of RVI co-founder Jok Madut Jok, Executive Director of the Sudd Institute.

RVI Nairobi Forum - Somalia's Jubaland Mar 04, 2013

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On 22 February 2013, the Rift Valley Institute's Nairobi Forum hosted an event entitled ‘Somalia's Jubaland: Past, present and potential futures’. Jubaland has been one of the most heavily fought over regions of Somalia—but with its perennial river, fertile soils and the port city of Kismayo it has the potential to be one of Somalia’s most productive regions. The social bonds that bind and divide populations across the borders of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia, give this region a particularly important regional significance. This has been made abundantly clear by the presence of Kenyan and Ethiopian military forces in the region. The Nairobi Forum event was chaired by RVI Fellow Cedric Barnes, of the International Crisis Group.

RVI Usalama Project - Jason Stearns on Radio France Internationale Feb 27, 2013

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Jason Stearns, director of RVI's Usalama Project, is interviewed by Radio France Internationale about the Peace, Security, and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region, signed in Addis Ababa on Sunday 24 February 2013, and its implications for the DRC crisis. Featured on the RVI Podcast with permission from Radio France Internationale. Original source: http://www.rfi.fr/emission/20130224-jason-stearns-specialiste-rdc-directeur-programme-oussalama

RVI Nairobi Forum - Hasty Repatriation of Somali refugees Feb 19, 2013

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On the 15th of February 2013, the RVI’s Nairobi Forum hosted the launch of a report by the Mogadishu-based think tank, the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS), entitled ‘Hasty Repatriation: Kenya's attempt to send Somali refugees home’. The research was undertaken in late 2012, after the Kenyan government called for Somali refugees to assemble in refugee camps and return to Somalia. With Somali refugees in Kenya forming one of the largest refugee populations in world, HIPS sought to examine implications of this new policy both for Somali refugees and for Somalia itself. The report's author, Anab Ismail Nur, joined H.E. Mohamed Ali, Somalia's Ambassador to Kenya, and Jacqueline Parlevliet of UNHCR – in a discussion chaired by Laetitia Bader of Human Rights Watch.

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