Publications
Articles, publications, books, tools and multimedia features from the U.S. Institute of Peace provide the latest news, analysis, research findings, practitioner guides and reports, all related to the conflict zones and issues that are at the center of the Institute’s work to prevent and reduce violent conflict.
Somalia Seeks Best Possible Elections, More Security Aid
Four years after the formation of a federal government in Somalia, the country has built nascent institutions, but it will need years of financial and security support to make the new state effective, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said April 20 at USIP. The country’s next critical step will be to hold national elections before September, a vote that Mohamud said will be less democratic than he and other Somalis had hoped—but an improvement in a country that has not elected any government since 1969.
Unlearning Violence: Democratic Republic of the Congo
Martin Luther King Jr. reminds us that “Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable…” So when we see steps toward justice and a narrative of hope returning to a country worn by violence and conflict, those of us in the peacebuilding field feel reinvigorated. We were fortunate to see an example on July 14, when the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo co-sponsored with USIP a discussion with that country’s Personal Representative of the President in Charge of the Fight Against Sexual Violence and Child Recruitment, Jeanine Mabunda Lioko Mudiayi.
Nigeria's Buhari Presses for Military Aid, Pledges 'Zero Tolerance' for Corruption
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said his new government will “do what it takes” to defeat the extremist violence of Boko Haram, and he bluntly called on the U.S. to ease its restrictions on providing the weapons that his military needs to prevail in the fight. In an address at the U.S. Institute of Peace today, he also reaffirmed “zero tolerance” for corruption and pledged to restore trust in the country’s governance.
Obama, in Africa, Will Need to Balance Agenda, Ex-Envoys Say
Six years after Barack Obama first visited sub-Saharan Africa as a presidential messenger of democracy, he faces a more complicated task in turning back to the continent next week. Obama hosts Nigeria’s new president, Muhammadu Buhari, on July 20, and then flies to Kenya and Ethiopia. As he does, the continent’s security threats and its urgent need to address ongoing poverty are forcing him to balance priorities and messages, say two former assistant secretaries of state now at the U.S. Insti...
Burundi at the Brink
Burundi is back at the brink. Less than a decade after the end of its civil war, a political conflict over the president’s attempt to stay in office for a disputed third term risks escalating into wider violence, policy specialists say. Police are fighting protesters who say that President Pierre Nkurunziza is violating the country’s post-civil war constitution by seeking a third term. They dispute a court ruling that authorized Nkurunziza’s re-election bid.
Democratic Vote Offers Nigeria a Chance to Rebuild, and to Lead Africa
Last week’s historic Nigerian election result—a first-ever, prospective peaceful transfer of power between civilian political opponents—could strengthen democratization efforts across Africa, according to analysts convened by the U.S. Institute of Peace. And it opens new prospects for the continent’s demographic and economic giant to strengthen governance, clean up corruption, and reverse the spread of the Boko Haram insurgency. The U.S. administration should show support for President-elect ...
Kenya Needs a Broad Strategy Against Al-Shabab
Kenya’s government must adopt a broader strategy to counter extremist violence such as last week’s attack by the militant group al-Shabab at Garissa University, according to two experts at the U.S. Institute of Peace. The attack killed at least 147 people, mostly students.
To Prevent and Resolve Violent Conflict, “We Need a Ground Game”
In an increasingly globalized, super-connected world, violent conflict moves faster and less predictably than a generation ago, with less regard for national borders. It combines dangerously with cyber networks, social media, environmental degradation and disease.
Nigeria PeaceGame Highlights Potential for Violence in Upcoming Election
Widening political rifts, increasing militant attacks and plunging oil revenues are escalating the risks of more widespread violence in Nigeria’s upcoming elections, according to experts who played roles ranging from international organizations to the militant group Boko Haram, during a daylong PeaceGame exercise.
How to Gauge Africa Summit Success? Updated, Realistic Perceptions
President Barack Obama’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit will be a success to the extent that it updates the perception of Africa’s economic, political and social potential without underestimating the remaining problems of violence, dictatorship and corruption, according to two former assistant secretaries of state for African Affairs.