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The proliferation of transnational migration has attracted scholars from diverse disciplines to investigate the experiences of migrants from different cultures. While cultural anthropologists are trained to understand the subjects’ emic perspectives, other social scientists who grapple with cultural diversity tend towards applying an etic analytical lens, without deeper engagement with given cultural logics. In order to fully overcome the conceptual marginalisation of cultures in our discussion of family relationships and intimacy, cultural specificities need to…

Population growth and urbanization in the developing countries where efforts are concentrated in the urban and rural development through provision of facilities such as roads, houses, etc has resulted in high demand for cement. Considering the impact of the cement project on the environment, it is mandatory to conduct an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the proposed cement project before commencements, which is the aimof this study. In South Sudan, EIAs are usually conducted to…

What’s new? Ethiopia is moving ahead with construction of Africa’s largest dam, despite Egypt’s worry that it will reduce the downstream flow of the Nile, the source of around 90 per cent of its freshwater supply. It is crucial that the parties resolve their dispute before the dam begins operating. Why does it matter? The Nile basin countries could be drawn into conflict because the stakes are so high: Ethiopia sees the hydroelectric dam as…

The net cereal production in 2018 (after deduction of post-harvest losses and seed use) in the traditional sector is estimated at about 745 000 tonnes, 15.5 percent below the average of the previous five years and 2.5 percent less than 2017. It is the smallest recorded output since the start of the conflict. In January 2019, 54 percent of the population (about 6.2 million people) were in IPC (Integrated Phase Classification) Phase 3: “Crisis”, Phase…

Availability of accurate and up to date data and information on land and different land uses, such as agriculture, forestry, mining, wildlife, water, housing and infrastructure, is critical to effective land governance and crucial for planning and managing the use of land and land-based resources. Public institutions and the government need land data and information for appropriate and timely decision-making; while land users, the general public and other stakeholders need it to effectively monitor and…

The Conflict and Research Programme at the London School of Economics, of which WPF is a partner, has just published a new South Sudan Policy Memo, “The Perils of Payroll Peace.” South Sudan’s peace is structured to create material incentives for political elites and soldiers to stick to the agreement. But it also creates a huge opportunity for the parties to mobilize for a new round of war. This happens through the process of cantonment of…

Trade and markets in weak states are often discussed in relation with violence, security and peace-building. A case in point are marketplaces in the Sudan-South Sudan borderlands where communities separated by insecurity and hostility meet, not only to trade but also to negotiate and exchange information. This does not imply that establishment of such markets automatically results in peace and stability. Based on new empirical research on the Amieth market in Abyei – an area…

What role does business play in peace-building and conflict reduction? This is the introduction (article) to a special issue that tackles this complex question, exploring varied business efforts to bring peace through six rigorous qualitative cases in Myanmar, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Somaliland, Brazil, Guatemala and El Salvador. Three main findings cut across this issue. First, local context is paramount to success; there is no one universal formula that a regulator, business or…

This paper explores electricity planning strategies in South Sudan under future conflict uncertainty. A stochastic energy system optimization model that explicitly considers the possibility of armed conflict leading to electric power generator damage is presented. Strategies that hedge against future conflict have the greatest economic value in moderate conflict-related damage scenarios by avoiding expensive near-term investments in infrastructure that may be subsequently damaged. Model results show that solar photovoltaics can play a critical role in…

The High Frequency South Sudan Survey, implemented by the South Sudan National Bureau of Statistics in collaboration with the World Bank, conducted several waves of representative surveys across seven of the ten former states between 2015 and 2017. These surveys provided a long overdue update to poverty numbers in South Sudan, with the previous national poverty estimates dating as far back as 2009. The escalation and expansion of the civil conflict posed severe challenges to…

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