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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240314T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240314T150000
DTSTAMP:20240319T150034Z
CREATED:20240225T213647Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240319T150034Z
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SUMMARY:Political Science as Problem Solving
DESCRIPTION:Event Recording\n \nIn this talk\, I will describe how political science researchers can take a problem-solving approach to orienting their work toward social issues. Drawing on a recent book chapter\, I’ll discuss how empirical political scientists can look for and define problems\, and the step-by-step process we go through (often in a series of studies)\, picking the right methodological tools to go from descriptive to causal analysis and intervention testing to find solutions. Along the way\, the kinds of questions we ask are shaped by ethical concerns\, the social value and practical considerations of potential interventions\, and analytical precision. I’ll use examples from contemporary research and my own experience in field experiments to show how we think about going from problems to solutions. \n\nCyrus Samii\nCyrus Samii is Associate Professor in the Wilf Family Department of Politics of New York University. He writes and teaches on quantitative social science methodology\, with an emphasis on causal inference. He is a prominent expert on the design of quantitative field research and social science randomized controlled trials. His applied research has focused on testing strategies to address governance challenges in contexts affected by war. He has carried out field studies in sites across Africa\, Asia\, and Latin America in collaboration with partners including the World Bank\, UN\, USAID\, UK Department for International Development\, and Danish International Aid Agency. From 2019-2023 he was Executive Director of the Evidence in Governance and Politics (EGAP) network.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/political-science-as-problem-solving/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240325T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240325T120000
DTSTAMP:20241213T152633Z
CREATED:20240423T185125Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152633Z
UID:10000860-1711360800-1711368000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Virtual Book Launch: Disarmament\, Demobilization\, and Reintegration of Ex-Combatants in Africa
DESCRIPTION:The book launch started with opening remarks and the introduction of the book editor\, Ibrahim Bangura\, and the two discussants\, Dr. Nelson Oppong and Professor Azeez Olaniyan\, by the moderator and director of the SSRC’s APN and NextGen program\, Dr. Cyril Obi. This was followed by an overview of the book by the editor. He explained that the book’s main objective was to highlight the success or failure of Disarmament\, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) processes in Africa\, and highlight the importance of collaboration and innovative thinking in enhancing the policies and practices on DDR and peacebuilding in the continent. Also of importance were its reflections on the prospects for DDR in Africa in the future. . \nDr. Bangura’s overview was followed by the reflections of some chapter contributors to the book. Irma Specht\, spoke to her chapter on “The Cultural Realities of the White Army in South Sudan and Questioning DDR as an Appropriate Tool\,” by analyzing the history\, evolution and goals of the armed group and its links to the Nuer ethnic group. She noted the shift in its objectives from just protecting cattle\, to obtaining more wealth and protecting its community. Irma argued that the White Army was not a paramilitary group as assumed in policy documents. She concluded that DDR could not be an effective tool in the case of the White Army by pointing out that as an old cultural institution with needs for being armed\, such as protecting the village and animals from armed intruders\, it cannot be demobilized. \nAnother contributor of a chapter titled\, “Somalia: Towards A Fourth Generation DDR?.” Dr. Gibril Sesay explored the complexities of conflicts and DDR in Somalia. He made a case for rethinking and reconceptualizing the use of DDR\, including interferences and approaches to stabilization and peacekeeping in the country. Following his overview of several generations of DDR\, in Somalia\, Dr. Sesay argued that the situation is so nuanced and everchanging that traditional approaches to DDR need to be critically analyzed to address the uniqueness of the situation within Somalia itself. \nIn presenting her chapter on\, “Lessons Learned and Promising Approaches to Gender-Responsive DDR Programming in Africa\,” Dr. Luisa Maria Dietrich-Ortega\, focused on lessons learned from her 20-year long journey as a researcher\, studying gender-responsive DDR. She spoke to the global pattern of the marginalization of women combatants\, even though throughout ancient history\, women have always been present and actively involved in armed groups. Dr. Dietrich-Ortega noted that women’s contributions to DDR have remained low and largely unacknowledged. She encouraged researchers to challenge and question the gendered assumptions underpinning DDR\, including the marginalization of women and girl ex-combatants\, and advocate for greater gender equality in DDR. \nSpeaking to a coauthored chapter contribution\, “From Combatants to Civilians: A Never-Ending Transition in Zimbabwe\,” Dr. Simbarashe Gukurume\, explored\, DDR in Zimbabwe\, focusing on how ex-combatants interacted with the state\, especially in the post-liberation era. He explained how the precariousness of war veterans’ livelihoods makes them easily mobilized by political elites to engage in acts of intimidation and violence\, especially those within the ruling party\, ZANU-PF. Dr. Simbarashe also the established a link between veterans of Zimbabwe’s war of national liberation\, and their post-liberation remobilization by the ruling ZANU-PF party. He\, therefore\, argued\, that the DDR process in Zimbabwe was an incomplete process\, because it focused mainly on demobilization and disarmament\, and not on the reintegration of ex-combatants. \nIn his intervention\, the first discussant of the book\, Professor Azeez Olaniyan\, spoke about silences surrounding damage—physical\, economical\, emotional\, psychological\, suffered in the course of conflict\, and how these narratives are not often captured in several DDR processes in the African continent. He argued that the voices of perpetrators of violent conflict were usually overlooked by the quick-switch series of DDR programs aimed at contributing to ending war\, and underscored the importance of examining DDR from perspectives informed by the experiences of combatants\, both active and non-active. \nThe second discussant\, Dr. Nelson Oppong\, drew attention to the risks inherent in the distinct binaries inherent to DDR—in particular\, the distinction between victims and perpetrators\, illustrating this point by noting the difficulty that could arise when addressing the issue of where to place child soldiers. Similarly\, he critiqued how DDR tends to frame victims as passive\, and perpetrators as people who have agency. Another binary Dr. Oppong identified was the false distinction that DDR makes between violence and non-violence in relation the transition from the conflict to the post-conflict phase. He also advocated for a grounded analysis of\, and repositioning of the discourse around DDR in ways that enables it to complement meaningful democratic engagement. \nThere were particular highlights during the Q&A session. Ibrahim Bangura was asked how the book addressed government complacency in DDR\, especially considering the Nigeria’s\,’ and other African governments’ complacency in reintegrating soldiers into society. He responded by noting that the challenge of disarming Boko Haram lies in the disconnect and absence of synergy between state and federal government approaches to DDR programs for combatants. With no clear strategy for integrating ex-combatants into areas lacking government control\, the risk of a “revolving door syndrome” persists\, undermining any significant DDR efforts. Irma Spect was questioned about addressing the involvement of religious parties in DDR\, focusing on how to address this group within the process. She emphasized the significance of considering both religious and traditional leaders\, noting their roles in fostering forgiveness\, tolerance\, and cleansing within communities. \nFollowing the Q&A session\, Ibrahim Bangura expressed his thanks to the APN team\, chapter contributors\, and discussants. In his concluding remarks\, he noted that some of the points raised would be addressed in his forthcoming book volume.. He highlighted the enduring relevance of studying DDR\, citing ongoing struggles in Somalia\, DRC\, and other African countries. He also pointed to new challenges to DDR represented by the emerging phenomena of violent gangs and cliques in African cities\, particularly in post-conflict settings\, where disillusioned youth are seeking recognition and identity through various means. The event was ended by the moderator who expressed thanks to the editor\, book contributors\, his colleagues\, and attendees.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/virtual-book-launch-disarmament-demobilization-and-reintegration-of-ex-combatants-in-africa/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240418T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240418T160000
DTSTAMP:20240419T165011Z
CREATED:20240408T173019Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240419T165011Z
UID:10000856-1713452400-1713456000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:How Can Scholars Help to Embed Institutions of Public-Sector Change?
DESCRIPTION:Event Recording\n \nThis talk discusses how social and behavioral scientists interested in the applied study of public services can think about ways for their research to have an impact. Professor Moynihan will draw from his experience studying government processes to discuss the purposeful framing of public problems\, and how researchers can design solutions of interest to policymakers.\n \nDonald Moynihan\nDonald Moynihan is the inaugural McCourt Chair at the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. His research seeks to improve how government works. He studies the administrative burdens people encounter in their interactions with government\, with the goal of making those interactions simple\, accessible and respectful. At the McCourt School\, he co-directs the Better Government Lab. He is the current President of the Association of Public Policy and Management. Moynihan has presented his research to policymakers at the U.S. Office of Management and Budget\, the World Bank\, the World Health Organization\, the United Nations\, OECD\, the Government Accountability Office\, as well as governments around the world. His writing and research has been cited in President Obama’s and President Biden’s budget proposals.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/how-can-scholars-help-to-embed-institutions-of-public-sector-change/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240522T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240526T170000
DTSTAMP:20241213T152625Z
CREATED:20240627T182243Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152625Z
UID:10000865-1716364800-1716742800@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Africa Peace Research and Education Association (AFPREA)
DESCRIPTION:By Jacinta Maweu \nThe Social Science Research Council’s (SSRC) African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and the Next Generation of Social Sciences (Next Gen) program hosted a panel at the 2024 Africa Peace Research and Education Association (AFPREA) Conference that took place between May 22nd – 26th\, 2024\, at the MS TCDC Training Center in Arusha\, Tanzania. The general conference theme was : Ujamaa\, Ubuntu\, and New Pan Africanisms: The Future of World Peace. \nThe title of the APN and Next Gen Panel was: Connecting Pan-Africanism to Indigenous Peacebuilding in Africa: Challenges and Prospects. It brought together three APN IRG fellows and two Next Gen Fellows. Firstly\, the presentations provided African perspectives to peacebuilding by focusing on the lessons and insights that can be drawn from indigenous African practices and histories/herstories in addressing and critiquing hegemonic peacebuilding discourses. Secondly\, the presenters also explored how indigenous peacebuilding norms and practices can build on opportunities by connecting to the renaissance of Pan Africanisms to advance peace\, democracy\, and sustainable development in Africa. Lastly\, the presentations highlighted the commonalities in the challenges facing the continent’s quest for peace and the potential for homegrown solutions. \nThe first presentation was on Pan-Africanism\, Conventional Peacebuilding and Indigenous Peacebuilding Approaches in Africa: Challenges\, Opportunities and Prospects by Charles Felix Komba (Next Gen 2022 / 2023 /2024). In his presentation\, Charles examined how African indigenous peacebuilding approaches\, coordinated at the grassroots and governed from below\, can become essential platforms for addressing the root causes of African conflicts\, thereby building peace\, promoting solidarity\, and fostering sustainability. He called for indigenous bottom-up peacebuilding interventions and strategies\, which view conflict as a communal concern. \nThe second presentation was on Navigating traditional institutions in conflict resolution: The evolution of The Njuri Ncheke in Eastern Kenya by Dr. John Mwangi Githigaro (APN IRG 2021 and Next Gen 2016 / 2018). His paper focused on a traditional alternative dispute resolution institution\, Njuri Ncheke\, in Eastern Kenya. It analyzed the extent to which Njuri Ncheke can be an efficient and viable alternative for managing and resolving contemporary communal conflicts\, such as land and family disputes. Dr. Githigaro highlighted how Njuri Ncheke is a based non-formal indigenous peacebuilding mechanisms\, which stem from the agency of local grassroots communities. He argued for the inclusion of local peacemakers with a wealth of contextual experiences\, including indigenous conflict resolution structures\, in the ongoing efforts towards building sustainable peace. \nThe third presentation was on Maasai Ethnopolitics and Institutional Literacy Towards Functional Peacebuilding by Benezet Rwelengera (Next Gen 2022 / 2023 and 2023 / 2024). His presentation critiqued the widespread depiction of Africa as a global conflict hotspot\, discursively constructed as needing Western aid and assistance for peacebuilding. He observed that this discourse ignores the inherent capacities of indigenous conflict resolution strategies that existed years before colonial disruptions. Drawing from his experiences with the Maasai pastoral community\, he argued that looking inward could offer insights into situated and integrated ways of peacebuilding. He interrogated the Maasai’s evolving ethnopolitics and institutional literacy to unpack the diverse mechanisms through which the Maasai\, who have been negatively framed as instigators of conflicts\, have maintained functional peace within their communities. \nThe fourth presentation was on Invisibility of Indigenous Knowledge and Philosophies On Peace Scholarship: Empirical Insight from Bibliometric Analysis of African Peace Studies by Dr. Edwin Ngowi (APN IRG 2023). He presented empirical evidence to highlight how western epistemology and thinking overwhelmingly dominate peace and conflict studies in the African context. Using bibliometric analysis\, Dr. Ngowi demonstrated the presence of colonial legacy and dominance of Euro-centric epistemic in peace scholarship in Africa. He presented data from the bibliometric analysis of peace studies published between 1968 and early-2024\, observing the asymmetrical power relationship in knowledge production and dissemination. The results on the authorship of publications showed that scholars from the United States and Western European countries dominate the list of productive and highly cited authors in peace and conflict studies in Africa. He argued that this perpetuates Western-centric ideas and liberal paradigms\, which undermine African epistemologies\, including indigenous knowledge and philosophies on peacebuilding\, which are relegated to the margins of scholarly debates and discussion on peace research in Africa. He therefore called for knowledge decolonization and the promotion of indigenous knowledge and philosophies (such as Ubuntu) in African peace studies. \nThe final presentation was on I am Because We Are? Ubuntuism\, Ethnic Conflicts and the Crisis of Identity in Africa by Dr. Jacinta Maweu (APN IRG 2015 and CWG Fellow 2022 / 2024). Dr. Maweu’s presentation interrogated the challenges and ironies of talking about Ubuntu as a unifying worldview for different ethnic communities in Africa\, including the call to live as “One”\, in the midst of recurrent ethnic conflicts in various countries within the continent. She argued that\, although Ubuntu in the spirit of “I am Because We Are\,” can forge a new African identity based on decolonized consciousness. This ‘oneness’ under certain circumstances could however be narrowly interpreted to mean members of one’s ethnic community or nationality. This paradox can be gleaned from several cases of profiling of ‘Insiders’ and ‘Outsiders’ in inter-ethnic and/or xenophobic attacks across the continent. She concluded by observing that the Ubuntu values of ‘humanness’ and ‘oneness’ can be harnessed by indigenous local peacebuilding cultures to address the recurrent inter-ethnic conflicts in most of Africa. \nAs the moderator\, Jacinta wrapped up the panel discussion by highlighting the interconnected themes in the five presentations that emphasized the need to decolonize peacebuilding in Africa by adopting homegrown local grassroots approaches\, in contrast to the conventional top-down intervention approaches. She also noted that presenters had highlighted the challenges as well as prospects of blending of indigenous peacebuilding principles and practices with a renewed sense of Pan Africanist ideas in to advancing freedom\, peace\, and unity in Africa. \nThere was a 20-minute interactive session with the audience\, which included 70 participants – many of which granted positive feedback to the fellows. It was a great opportunity for the APN and Next Gen fellows to share their research findings with a scholarly audience\, and to network with participants drawn from different countries in Africa\, Europe and the United States.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/africa-peace-research-and-education-association-afprea/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240523T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240523T150000
DTSTAMP:20240524T184642Z
CREATED:20240510T062541Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240524T184642Z
UID:10000857-1716472800-1716476400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:The Evidence-to-Policy Pipeline
DESCRIPTION:Event Recording\n \nRecent years have seen a large increase in the availability of rigorous impact evaluations that could inform policy decisions. However\, it is not enough for evidence to exist: It must also be seen as relevant and correctly interpreted. In this talk\, I’ll share new research (with Aidan Coville and Sampada KC) drawing on experiments conducted with policymakers\, practitioners\, and researchers at World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank workshops. We explored how each of these three groups respond to and weigh evidence when it is presented to them\, and which types of evidence policymakers tend to weigh more heavily. We find greater weight placed on good news than bad\, insensitivity to confidence intervals\, and that policymakers were extremely sensitive to context and whether the evidence or recommendation was produced locally. After presenting results\, I will discuss what researchers can do to make it more likely that their findings are used. \n\nEva Vivalt\nEva Vivalt is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Toronto. She specializes in investigating stumbling blocks to generate evidence-based policy decisions\, including both methodological issues as well as how evidence is interpreted and used. Professor Vivalt has published in Science\, the Journal of the European Economics Association and the Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics\, among other outlets. She is a co-founder of the Social Science Prediction Platform — which coordinates the collection of forecasts of research results in the social sciences\, and founder of AidGrade\, a research institute that generates and synthesizes evidence in international development. Professor Vivalt is also a principal investigator on Y Combinator Research’s basic income renewed computer technology RCT and has other interests in labor economics\, development and global priorities research.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/the-evidence-to-policy-pipeline/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240625T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240625T170000
DTSTAMP:20240716T190454Z
CREATED:20240716T190231Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240716T190454Z
UID:10000867-1719302400-1719334800@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Virtual Book Launch: America and The Production of Islamic Truth in Uganda
DESCRIPTION:The virtual book launch for America and The Production of Islamic Truth in Uganda\, began with opening remarks and the introduction of the book’s author\, Dr. Yahya Sseremba\, by the moderator\, Dr. Cyril Obi\, Director of the SSRC’s APN and Next Gen Program. \nThere were exactly four speakers: Dr. Yahya Sseremba\, the author and Research Fellow at Makerere Institute for Social Research (MISR) and a distinguished alumnus of the Next Gen program; Prof. Suren Pillay\, Head of African Studies and Linguistics and Director of the Center for African Studies at the University of Cape Town; Dr. Margaret Monyani\, a Senior Migration Researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS); and Dr. Jacob Katumusiime\, a Religion and Politics scholar at MISR and a distinguished alumnus of the Next Gen program. Dr. Obi introduced the three discussants and then invited Dr. Sseremba to speak on his book. \nDr. Sseremba thanked Dr. Obi and the APN and Next Gen team for the opportunity to discuss his book. He noted that the book investigates how the war on terror has transformed the postcolonial state in Africa. He explained how power structures in Uganda have changed\, focusing particularly on Islamic education and American-led counter-extremism efforts. He contrasted pre-colonial power dynamics\, which integrated outsiders into the political community\, with modern colonial power\, which perpetually marginalized Muslims. Dr. Sseremba also emphasized how both colonial and post-colonial governments employed indirect rule and violence to exert control over Muslims. He continued by highlighting how current hegemonic American intervention aims to standardize Islamic education\, undermining traditional practices and personal autonomy. He articulated how local Muslim resistance to these reforms challenges and perpetuates the colonial legacy of separate but politically marginalized governance for Muslims. \nThe first discussant\, Prof. Suren Pillay\, praised Dr. Sseremba’s book for delving into the particularities of Ugandan colonial and post-colonial history. He admired how the book challenges assumptions in existing literature about Islam in Uganda\, emphasizing its interventionist effort in questioning established theoretical frameworks. In short\, the book “refuses easy binaries\,” offering new ways to understand anti-Islam and anti-Muslim violence. He also noted that the book addressed how dominant narratives around Islamist violence often distort realities within these communities. Prof. Pillay concluded by applauding the book for its nuanced analysis\, its ability to transcend binaries like tradition versus modernity\, and its refusal to adopt oversimplified abstractions. \nThe second discussant\, Dr. Margaret Monyani\, praised the book for its in-depth analysis of the profound impact of war and terror on the post-colonial state in Africa\, focusing on American intervention in Islamic education in Uganda. She highlighted three key messages: the transformation of the post-colonial state from indirect governance to direct state control over Islamic life; the critical examination of U.S. foreign policy in countering extremism during the War on Terror; and the urgency of local Muslim communities in responding to external interventions by modernizing education. She appreciated the book’s interdisciplinary approach that combines historical analysis\, theoretical frameworks\, and critical examination of contemporary interventions\, but noted the lack of indigenous African perspectives and gender analysis. \nThe third discussant\, Dr. Jacob Katumusiime\, described the book as a crucial reminder of the lasting impact of colonialism on Islamic thought and education in Uganda. He compared American intervention to the British colonial mission\, both aiming to control Islamic practice under the guise of a “civilizing mission.” He questioned how contemporary Muslim thinkers can imagine an identity beyond colonial modernity and considered the dominance of Saudi Salafi interpretations. Jacob also pondered whether non-Muslims could contribute to Islamic scholarship. He ultimately argued that the book is a powerful critique of colonialism and a call to decolonize Islamic thought and state institutions. \nThere were particular highlights during the Q&A session. Habib Uthuman Mailamung asked Dr. Sseremba about Muslims’ subjective interpretations of Islamic teachings to justify violence. Dr. Sseremba responded\, by stating that every interpretation is subjective\, as “the text shapes the believer\, but the believer also shapes the text through their interpretation.” He suggested that understanding how believers might interpret texts to justify violence against the United States\, the Ugandan state\, or particular groups moves us beyond the simplistic view that texts solely control believers’ actions and beliefs. \nAnother participant\, Dr. Ahmed Ibrahim asked Dr. Sseremba to what extent the strategies and techniques of governing Muslims in Uganda by the colonial and post-colonial state inform Muslim rebellion or non-rebellion. Dr. Sseremba responded by stating that to grasp violence in Muslim societies\, we must place it within the broader context of political violence and modernity. The modern state embodies an inherently authoritarian and violent structure of power. \nFollowing the Q&A session\, the author and all discussants thanked the APN and Next Gen team for allowing them to discuss the book\, praising it once again for its thoughtfulness and engaging nature. Dr. Obi concluded the Virtual Book Launch by stating that the works of scholars like Dr. Sseremba remind us that there is still resistance\, agency\, and hope in Africa even in seemingly impossible situations. He thanked all the participants in the event for their insightful questions and contributions\, while announcing that another virtual book discussion would be scheduled to hold in a couple of months.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/virtual-book-launch-america-and-the-production-of-islamic-truth-in-uganda/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240722
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240727
DTSTAMP:20241213T152615Z
CREATED:20241017T173300Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152615Z
UID:10000872-1721606400-1722038399@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:2024 APN and Next Gen Research Methods Workshop Series
DESCRIPTION:Lagos\, Nigeria \nFrom July 22 to July 26\, the African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen) program of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC)\, in partnership with the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA)\, hosted the Research Methods Workshop at the Lagos Continental Hotel\, Victoria Island\, Lagos\, Nigeria.  \nOn Monday\, the workshop began with opening remarks from Dr. Cyril Obi\, the Program Director of APN and Next Gen. He thanked everyone in attendance for coming to the workshop\, expressing excitement for the days ahead. His remarks were followed by that of Prof. Eghosa Osaghae\, the Director-General of the NIIA\, welcoming participants to Lagos and Nigeria.  \nThe opening session was followed by a keynote lecture entitled “Insurgency and Environmental Security in the West Sahel: The Case of Northeast Nigeria\,” by Prof. Usman Tar\, the Honorable Commissioner of Information and Internal Security in Borno State\, Nigeria.  The Guest of Honor at the event was Prof. Isaac Olawale Albert\, Professor of African History\, Peace and Conflict Studies at the Institute for Peace and Strategic Studies (IPSS)\,  University of Ibadan\, who moderated the public lecture. The lecture explored  the linkages between environmental challenges such as desertification and reduced access to natural resources\, and fierce competition between groups such as pastoralists and farmers\, as well as violent conflict involving insurgent groups such as Boko Haram. This was followed by a Question-and-Answer session between Prof. Tar and members of the audience of APN and Next Gen fellows\, as well as scholars and guests from NIIA.  \nAfter a short break\, fellows returned to  the interactive workshop sessions. There were five APN IRF working groups and eight Next Gen thematic groups. The rest of the day was dedicated to the workshop sessions. \nOn Tuesday\, the day commenced with a keynote lecture entitled\, “Researching Women\, development\, and Peace in Africa: Navigating Between Field\, classroom\, and public sector\,” by Professor Precious Kassey Garba of the Department of Economics from the University of Ibadan\, Nigeria. The Guest of Honor at the event was Professor Femi Otubanjo from the NIIA\, who moderated the lecture. Professor Garba urged scholars addressing women’s issues in Africa to shift their gaze from problem identification to solution-focused research. She also called on researchers to adopt methodologies that genuinely serve Africa’s interests. This was followed by a Question-and-Answer session between Prof. Garba and members of the audience of APN and Next Gen fellows\, as well as scholars and guests from the NIIA \nAfter a short break\, participants returned to  the interactive workshop sessions\, splintering into the same groups as the day before. This took up the rest of the afternoon. \nOn Wednesday\, the day commenced with the APN IRF working groups and the Next Gen thematic groups’ meeting for their workshop sessions in the morning. This was followed by visits to places of interest\, including two cultural sites in Lagos\, The Nike Art Gallery and the Lekki Arts and Crafts Market\, in the afternoon. Afterward\, workshop participants enjoyed an evening dinner and cultural entertainment at the Lagoon Restaurant. \nOn Thursday\, the fellows engaged in two one-on-one mentoring and feedback sessions with a group facilitator. These sessions lasted from morning to early afternoon. Afterward\, there was a panel discussion with fellows and mentors\, moderated by Dr. Cyril Obi\, entitled “Developing and Applying Interdisciplinary Research Methods: Advancing African Perspectives to Knowledge Production\,” where the presenters shared their experiences and insights into challenges\, benefits\, and limitations of multidisciplinary research methods. The panelists included: Dr. Henrietta Nyamnjoh (Workshop Facilitator)\, Dr. Steve Akoth (Workshop Facilitator)\, Sean Maliehe (APN IRF | National University of Lesotho)\, Angela Mathias Kavishe (APN IRF | The Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy)\, Matseliso Motsoane (Next Gen Completion | University of the Witwatersrand)\, and Marie Grace Kagoyire Gasinzigwa (Next Gen Completion | Stellenbosch University). \nThis was followed by a Question-and-Answer session between the panelists and the audience. \nFollowing the panel\, there was a closing ceremony where Prof. Efem Ubi\, NIIA’s Director of Research\, and Dr. Cyril Obi delivered closing remarks and a vote of thanks. This was followed by the presentation of certificates of participation to 2024 APN and Next Gen fellows in attendance.  \nThe APN and Next Gen program would like to thank all of the fellows\, mentors\, keynote lecturers\, guests of honor\, and the members of the NIIA for their participation\, enthusiasm\, support\, and commitment to the program.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/2024-apn-and-next-gen-research-methods-workshop-series/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240826T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240912T193000
DTSTAMP:20240911T175701Z
CREATED:20240809T144700Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240911T175701Z
UID:10000868-1724697000-1726169400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Platforms and Elections: the Global State of Play
DESCRIPTION:Nine months into the 2024 global elections year\, how well are governments and social media companies safeguarding democracy? In the past few years\, governments around the world have responded to platform-enabled foreign interference\, threats against politicians\, and campaigns of disinformation with policies to protect election integrity and democratic participation. However\, government regulations and platforms’ own policies have provoked concerns that they may undermine freedom of expression or election fairness. What’s the global state of play with regard to social media and freedom of speech in elections in the midst of the 2024 election cycle? \nJoin us in person at SSRC to hear three experts in political communication discuss how digital media is being used in elections around the world. We will be joined by Shannon McGregor (UNC-Chapel Hill)\, Jonathan Corpus Ong (UMass Amherst) and Chris Tenove (University of British Columbia)\, who will lay out what we know so far about how the actions taken by platforms and governments to regulate speech on social media affects elections and democratic practice. \nTheir conversation will highlight how digitally networked information environments challenge democratic institutions—chief among them\, the ability to establish a shared sense of reality. \nThe discussion will be a live recording of The Sunday Show\, the Tech Policy Press podcast\, and will be moderated by TPP editor Justin Hendrix.  \nMcGregor\, Ong and Tenove are contributing to an international study of social media policies and elections run by the Centre for the Study of Democratic Institutions\, based at the University of British Columbia.  \nThe event will begin at 6:30 on August 26\, 2024; a happy hour will follow the event. Please RSVP for more details! RSVP here: https://forms.gle/QapBYqKthvKRtjTX8
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/platforms-and-elections-the-global-state-of-play/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240918
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240920
DTSTAMP:20241213T152609Z
CREATED:20241024T152229Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241213T152609Z
UID:10000875-1726617600-1726790399@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:2024 APN and Next Gen African University Seminar Series\, September 18 - September 19\, 2024
DESCRIPTION:Machakos County\, Kenya \nThe African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen) program of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC)\, in partnership with the Peace and Development Researchers Association (PADRA)\, held the African University Seminar Series\, Kenya (AUSS-K) at Machakos University Hotel and Conference Centre in Machakos County\, Kenya. PADRA\, which is the off-shoot of AUSS-K\, is composed of current and former Kenyan SSRC’s APN and Next Gen scholars and supported by the APN and Next Gen Program and organized by the Local Organizing Committee (LOC). The seminar was held\, in partnership with the School of Humanities and Social Sciences\, at the Machakos University Hotel and Conference Center\, Kenya. The seminar theme was “Decoloniality and People-Centered Approaches to Peace\, Security\, and Development in Africa.” \nOn Wednesday\, the seminar commenced with welcome and opening remarks by the AUSS-K Co-Chairs\, Dr. Jacinta Maweu and Dr. Rahma Hassan\, supported by other members of the LOC and Ms. Kate Theriault\, who represented the APN and Next Gen Program Director Cyril Obi.Prof. Joyce Agalo\, Vice Chancellor of Machakos University\, declared the event open and delivered a keynote lecture on “The Dialogue on Decolonization\, Peace\, and Development: Reclaiming African Narratives\,” emphasizing the importance of decolonization by understanding and utilizing African scholars’ cultural roots\, traditional knowledge\, and values that will enable African scholars to solve African problems. She called on the audience of APN and Next Gen fellows to influence society beyond their scholarship by informing policy decisions and dialogues\, thereby supporting African solutions and institutions. She concluded by saying that the “future of Africa is not predetermined” but is being presently shaped. \nThe first panel\, Epistemologies of Decoloniality: Peace and Development in Africa\, was moderated by Prof. Alex Kamwaria (APN 2022) and featured paper presentations by Flora Mutere\, Abenea Ndago and Mahat Hassan\, and Maryline Chepngetich. \nThe second panel\, Innovative Approaches to Peacebuilding in Kenya\, was moderated by Dr. Susan Kung’u (Next Gen 2020 and 2022) and featured paper presentations by Frederick Ogenga\, Jacinta Matheka\, Job Mwaura\, and Job Wefwafwa. \nThe third panel\, Media\, Youth\, and Social Change: Decolonial Perspectives and Emerging Trends\, was moderated by Dr. John Mwangi Githigaro (Next Gen 2016\, 2017\, and 2018\, and APN 2021) and featured paper presentations by Joyce Omwoha\, Elizabeth Wanjala\, and Susan Kung’u. \nOn Thursday\, Dr. Richard Wafula\, Senior Lecturer and Dean of the School of Humanities & Social Sciences at Kenyatta University\, gave the keynote address\, “Local and Trans-Local Ways of Ensuring Peace and Development: A Complement to Decoloniality.” Through a literary approach\, Dr. Wafula addressed post-independence Kenya’s current location as a decolonizing state with progress that must still be made. \nThe fourth panel\, Challenges and Lessons in Peacebuilding and Justice Systems in Kenya\, was moderated by Dr. Graham Amakanji (Next Gen 2021 and 2022) and featured paper presentations by John Mwangi\, Lilian Kong’ani\, Joseph Karanji\, and Marion Ouma. \nThe fifth panel\, Indigenous Knowledge/Approaches to Security and Peacebuilding\, was moderated by Dr. Jacinta Maweu and featured paper presentations by Kizito Shabala\, Patrick Mutinda\, and Kanyinga Benson. \nThe sixth panel\, Decolonizing Women’s Leadership: Evolving Narratives and Representations in Kenyan Leadership\, was moderated by Dr. Lillian Kong’ani and featured paper presentations by Grace Njoki\, Norah Atambo\, Athanas Mutsiya\, and Muema Wambua. \nThe seventh and final panel\, Digital Activism\, Climate Change\, and Community Engagement for Peace and Development\, was moderated by Joyce Omwoha and featured presentations by Norah Mose\, Alex Kamwaria\, and Jacinta Maweu. \nThroughout the seminar\, the audience of APN and Next Gen fellows engaged deeply in the materials presented by their peers\, posing questions\, feedback\, and interventions to the panel based on their disciplinary background\, personal experiences of the ongoing issues in Kenya\, and their research findings. The event also hosted the Annual General Meeting of PADRA\, a registered non-profit in Kenya. The meeting brought together members to discuss and strategize on the next steps to sustain the organization and create impact. \nTo conclude the seminar\, the LOC of the AUSS-K and the SSRC representative thanked all attendees for participating in the event\, presenting their work\, networking\, and engaging their peers in meaningful discussions.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/2024-apn-and-next-gen-african-university-seminar-series-september-18-september-19-2024/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240919T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240919T150000
DTSTAMP:20240920T180836Z
CREATED:20240826T172245Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240920T180836Z
UID:10000864-1726754400-1726758000@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Are We Doing Social Science Backwards? An Integrative Approach to Experimental Research
DESCRIPTION:The dominant paradigm of experimental social and behavioral science views an experiment as a test of a theory\, where the theory is assumed to generalize beyond the experiment’s specific conditions. But in reality\, the process of reconciling findings from many different experiments conducted in different settings happens either inefficiently or not at all. I argue that this ‘incommensurability problem’ has arisen out of an historical emphasis in social science on the advancement of individual theories in isolation rather than on integrating competing theories\, where the goal is to generalize to (i.e. predict) cases or conditions that we have not already seen. Here I outline an approach\, integrative experiment design\, that effectively inverts the usual sequence of social scientific reasoning\, starting first with the question of generalization (“over what domain do I want my theory to apply?”)\, then conducting the relevant experiments and analysis\, and only then interpreting the results in terms of existing (or new) theory. I will illustrate how to apply the integrative experiment design approach with an example from research on team performance. \nEvent Recording\n \n\nDuncan J. Watts\nDuncan Watts is a computational social scientist interested in social and organizational networks\, collective dynamics of human systems\, web-based experiments\, and analysis of large-scale digital data\, including the production\, consumption\, and absorption of news. He is the Stevens University Professor and twenty-third Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor at the University of Pennsylvania. In addition to his appointment at the Annenberg School\, he holds faculty appointments in the Department of Computer and Information Science in the School of Engineering and Applied Science\, and the Department of Operations\, Information and Decisions in the Wharton School\, where he is the inaugural Rowan Fellow. He holds a secondary appointment in the Department of Sociology in the School of Arts & Sciences. He directs the Computational Social Science Lab at Penn.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/are-we-doing-social-science-backwards-an-integrative-approach-to-experimental-research/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240925
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240926
DTSTAMP:20241113T203423Z
CREATED:20241113T203332Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241113T203423Z
UID:10000876-1727222400-1727308799@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Virtual Book Discussion: Transnational Activities of Women-Focused Civil Society Actors in Southern Africa - September 25\, 2024
DESCRIPTION:The virtual book discussion for Transnational Activities of Women-Focused Civil Society Actors in Southern Africa began with opening remarks and the introduction of one of the book’s co-authors\, Dr. Cecilia Nedziwe\, by the moderator\, Dr. Cyril Obi\, Director of the SSRC’s APN and Next Gen Program. \nThe book discussion was led by three speakers: Prof. Siphokazi Magadla\, Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Political and International Studies at Rhodes University\, Dr. Lilian N.S. Kong’ani\, a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Cape Town\, and Erin Hazan\, PhD Candidate at the University of the Witwatersrand. \nDr. Cecilia Nedziwe thanked Dr. Obi and the APN and Next Gen team for the opportunity to discuss her book. She noted that the main point of her book is that non-state actors\, particularly women-focused civil society organizations\, play a crucial role in shaping regional norms and policies related to gender security within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. She introduces the concept of “regional thickening” to highlight how actors engage in transnational activities that influence state policies and foster regional cohesion\, thereby challenging traditional state norms in international relations. She argued that these interactions not only contribute to the development and diffusion of gender norms but also have a transformative impact on regional security dynamics\, advocating for a more nuanced understanding of regionalism. \nThe first discussant\, Prof. Siphokazi Magadla\, expressed pleasure having the opportunity  to discuss Dr. Nedziwe’s book. She praised Nedziwe for tracing the historical construction of regional identity\, illustrating that regions are socially created. The establishment of the University of Botswana\, Lesotho\, and Switzerland is noted as an example of a key moment for fostering solidarity and self-determination against apartheid in Southern Africa. \nProf. Siphokazi Magadla also critiqued contemporary African states for prioritizing trade agreements over the free movement of people\, which hinders transformative regional integration. She explored how the book examines how African women have turned to regional and global platforms for advocacy. Overall\, she commended Nedziwe’s work for its depth and its relevance to advancing gender issues in Southern Africa\, stating: “African women are central in the thinking and mobilization of a gender architecture that socializes states to accept the norm of gender equality as desirable and achievable on the local and individual level.” \nThe second discussant\,  Dr. Lilian N.S. Kong’ani\, praised the book\, commending the authors for their insightful analysis of women’s agency in transnational civil society organizations across six SADC countries. She highlighted the book’s strong empirical basis and its framework\, which showcases women’s roles in addressing gendered insecurities within various global and regional policy contexts. She also raised reflective questions about the authors’ positionality\, the historical figures discussed\, and the implications of women’s activities on men and boys\, while also critiquing the trend of government funding in civil society for its potential impact on women’s advocacy efforts. She found the book to be a valuable resource for ongoing discussions on gender equality and development in Africa. \nThe third discussant\, Erin Hazan\, praised the book for its significant contributions to understanding gender advocacy in the region. She emphasized how the book highlights the power of transnational networks\, showing how Southern African women-focused civil society organizations leverage these connections to advocate for gender equality on both local and global stages. In her words\, “Independence movements in African countries often focus on liberation from colonial powers\, but women’s rights were secondary concerns. The book shows  African women activists intertwining women’s rights with national independence and equality.”  In her opinion\, both authors powerfully illustrate the historical context behind colonialism and apartheid\, which continues to shape contemporary social and political struggles\, and demonstrate how these organizations use international frameworks to hold governments accountable. She also appreciated the book’s comprehensive case studies\, which provide depth to its arguments\, as well as its engagement with intersectionality\, recognizing the complex realities faced by women. \nThere were several highlights during the Q & A session. One of the questions was for Dr. Cecilia Nedziwe\, asking based on her research\, about the traits of norms that tend to successfully make it through the norm cycle. Furthermore\, she was interrogated about the traits of those norms that do not make it through? In responding\, she pointed out that successful norms tend to align with government interests\, such as HIV/AIDS and climate change\, leading to cooperation\, while those addressing human rights are often rejected as threats. Cecilia also observed that efforts are ongoing in the SADC region to establish a legal framework for guaranteed civil society participation in intergovernmental processes. \nFollowing the Q&A session\, the author and all discussants thanked the APN and Next Gen team for the opportunity to discuss the book – Dr. Cecilia Nedziwe\, in particular\, thanked members of the audience for thoughtfully and critically engaging with her book. Dr. Cyril Obi announced that another virtual book discussion in the series would be scheduled for November.
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/virtual-book-discussion-transnational-activities-of-women-focused-civil-society-actors-in-southern-africa-september-25-2024/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241003
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241005
DTSTAMP:20241001T182559Z
CREATED:20240919T222242Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241001T182559Z
UID:10000871-1727913600-1728086399@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Mercury Project Solutions Summit - In-Person Event Registration
DESCRIPTION:Registration includes access to breakfast at 08:30 on University of Nairobi Towers 4th Floor LT 401\nAre you curious about how social science can change health outcomes? Or about how we can better interact with and shape our information environments based on behavioral science?  \nJoin us for an exciting morning of discussions\, free breakfast (08:30 on University of Nairobi Towers 4th Floor LT 401)\, and expert insights that impact your world. \nOn 3 October 2024\, the Social Science Research Council and the Institute for Development Studies will host a public plenary as part of the Mercury Project Solutions Summit. We invite you to join us for “Solutions and evidence in context—toward better health\,” where we will explore how and when solutions-oriented social and behavioral science can help tackle public health challenges\, including vaccine demand and the role of trusted information in shaping health behaviors. \nWhy attend?\n\nHear from experts across the public\, private\, and philanthropic sectors about how we can encourage science-based protective health actions and restore trust in institutions.\nHave your questions answered—submit them through the registration form.\nWalk away with free merchandise (available at the end for attendees).\n\nFeatured experts:\n\nPaul Kamau (University of Nairobi)\nGladys Mugambi (Ministry of Health\, Kenya)\nDeepa Risal Pokharel (UNICEF)\nAbdul El-Sayed (Department of Health\, Human\, and Veterans’ Services\, Wayne County\, USA)\nViknesh Sounderajah (Google and YouTube Health)\nGerishom Gimaiyo (The Rockefeller Foundation)\nAnna Harvey (Social Science Research Council)\nHeather Lanthorn (Social Science Research Council)\n\nWho Should Attend? Whether you’re in health sciences\, journalism\, political science\, psychology\, economics\, development studies\, or any field interested in how to leverage social science to shape online and offline health behaviors\, this plenary is for you. \nRegister below to secure your seat\, breakfast with a chance to network with experts\, and exclusive event gifts. Don’t miss hearing from UoN’s own Paul Kamau and experts from around the globe! \n \nEvent Registration Form\nOnline Form – Mercury Project Solutions Summit In-Person Event Registration
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/mercury-project-solutions-summit-in-person-event-registration/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241003
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241005
DTSTAMP:20241016T164215Z
CREATED:20240830T150902Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241016T164215Z
UID:10000870-1727913600-1728086399@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Mercury Project Solutions Summit
DESCRIPTION:Institute for Development StudiesUniversity of Nairobi\, Nairobi\, Kenya \nSince 2021\, over 120 researchers in the Social Science Research Council’s Mercury Project consortium have been working around the world to identify cost-effective and scalable interventions that build demand for vaccines and information environments supportive of science-based health decision-making.  \nOn October 3 – 4\, 2024\, the Mercury Project\, together with the University of Nairobi’s Institute for Development Studies\, welcomed leaders from the public\, private\, and philanthropic communities to the Mercury Project Solutions Summit. Together\, they leveraged new evidence to identify the most promising opportunities to increase vaccine demand and support science-based health decision-making.  \nEvent Recording\n \nAt the opening plenary\, representatives from the research\, policy\, and philanthropic communities framed both the challenges and the opportunities for evidence-based strategies that build robust vaccine demand chains and support science-based health decision-making. \n\nFunders and Partners
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/mercury-project-solutions-summit/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241010T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241010T150000
DTSTAMP:20241021T182133Z
CREATED:20241008T151233Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241021T182133Z
UID:10000858-1728568800-1728572400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:2024 SSRC Katznelson Fellow Lecture: The Economist as Plumber
DESCRIPTION:In this lecture\, Esther Duflo shares her experience working in collaboration with policymakers in the developing world\, and highlight the critical role of bringing a “plumbing” mindset to policy-relevant research: a mindset where policymakers realize that any program has so many dimensions that it is very difficult to get them all right\, and where there is a need for constant experimentation and tinkering for policies to reach their full potential. \nEvent Recording\n  \nAbout Esther Duflo\nEsther Duflo is the Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics in the Department of Economics at MIT\, co-founder and co-director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) and Chaire\, Pauvreté et politiques publiques\, Collège de France. In her research\, she seeks to understand the economic lives of the poor\, with the aim of helping design and evaluate social policies. She has worked on health\, education\, financial inclusion\, environment and governance. Professor Duflo has received numerous academic honors and prizes including the 2019 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel\, the John Bates Clark Medal (2010)\, and a MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship (2009). With Abhijit Banerjee\, she wrote Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty\, which has been translated into more than 17 languages\, and Good Economics for Hard Times. \nAbout the SSRC Katznelson Fellow Lecture\nThe SSRC Katznelson Fellow Prize was created in honor of former SSRC President and Board Member Ira Katznelson\, Ruggles Professor of Political Science and History and Deputy Director of Columbia World Projects\, Columbia University. The Katznelson Fellow Lecture recognizes distinguished scholars who exemplify innovation in the social and behavioral sciences.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/2024-ssrc-katznelson-fellow-lecture/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241029T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241029T140000
DTSTAMP:20241101T140011Z
CREATED:20241021T160736Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241101T140011Z
UID:10000873-1730206800-1730210400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Inter-American Foundation (IAF) Research Fellowship Informational Webinar
DESCRIPTION:The SSRC and the Inter-American Foundation (IAF) will host a joint webinar via Zoom to discuss the fellowship program\, application tips\, and audience questions. The webinar will be delivered in English with simultaneous interpretation in French\, Portuguese\, and Spanish. It will be recorded and posted to the program website for those who are unable to attend. \n\n\n\nEvent Details\n\n\n\nTuesday\, October 29\, 2024 from 1 pm to 2 pm EDT (17:00 to 18:00 UTC)Zoom link: https://iaf.zoomgov.com/j/1604474886?pwd=hW28q4azGeBwsSQn00sphsY8AZdVg7.1Meeting ID: 160 447 4886Passcode: 305635 \nView the webinar recording here: https://youtu.be/G0rYSXJt-tE
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/inter-american-foundation-iaf-fellowship-webinar/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241031
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241102
DTSTAMP:20241125T214218Z
CREATED:20241125T213159Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241125T214218Z
UID:10000877-1730332800-1730505599@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:SSRC Sponsored Panel at the Amplifying African Voices for Strategic Action (AFSA) Conference\, 31st October – Ist November 2024
DESCRIPTION:Location: Strathmore University\, Kenya\nThe SSRC’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation for Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen) sponsored a panel made up of members of the Peace and Development Researchers Association (PADRA) of Kenya\, on ”Global Powers\, Regional Organizations and Peace\, Security and Development in the Horn of Africa\, at the Amplifying African Voices for Stretegic Action (AFSA) conference\, Nairobi. Four papers were presented in this panel. Dr Kizito Sabala from the University of Nairobi spoke on The Notion of African Solutions to African Problems and External Interests: Exploring the Missing Link in Africas Peace and Security Agenda in the Horn.  His presentation made a case for the African Union (AU) to take on its rightful role in peace and security as mandated by its founding documents. The paper further evaluated the role of external players in influencing the outcomes of conflict resolution and political settlements and identified funding as a major challenge facing peacebuilding efforts. Based on the case of the Horn\, the presenter captured the implications of the AU’s failure to implement the notion of ’African Solutions to African Problems’ such as the inability to limit the influence of external actors on Africa’s peace and security agenda in a significant way and ii) leverage the agency of  African regional organizations in promoting peace and  security. \nDr Marion Ouma\, a Research Associate at the University of South Africa spoke on:  Social Policy in Africa: Examining the Pathway to Peace and Social Cohesion. Her paper explored the interrelatedness between the causes and drivers of conflict such as poverty\, scarcity and the erosion of social wellbeing and cohesiveness.  Her argument in the paper was that social policy is one laudable intervention that can increase societal cohesion in contexts where poverty and vulnerability subsist. The paper noted that transformative social policy could contribute to enhancing and sustaining peace and development at multiple scales.  She also remarked that most of the continent‘s international organizations often take lead in shaping and framing social policy frameworks thereby usurping Africa’s agency. The paper appraised the African Union Social Policy Framework (AU-SPF) and related frameworks such as Agenda 2063\, the African Union Protocol on Social Protection and Social Security\, and their potential for creating a transformative social policy relevant to peace and security on the continent. The paper concluded that the implementation of the AU-SPF and related policy frameworks while adopting   an African agency perspective would improve the social contract and ultimately lead to the promotion of nation building and social cohesion. \nIn his paper on; The East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) intervention in eastern DRC: actors and implications for regional integration and stability\, Dr Nicodemus Minde\, from the Institute for Security Studies\, Nairobi\, relied on the Regional Security Complex Theory (RSCT) in assessing the impacts of the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF)\, and its short-lived intervention in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.  The paper discussed the evolution of processes that led to EACRF deployment and its related mandate of addressing increased violence by armed groups in the eastern DRC. The paper assessed the actors in the peace process and evaluated the EACRF performance amid the complexities of actors’ interests in the eastern DRC region.  The paper assessed that while the EACRF has made strides in stabilizing certain areas and facilitating non-violent transfers of territory\, its effectiveness had been constrained by ambiguous mandates\, coordination challenges\, and competing national interests. The paper concluded that regional integration and addressing the root causes of conflict through inclusive governance and economic development would be crucial for achieving lasting stability in eastern DRC even as EACRF was replaced by the The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC). \nDr John Mwangi from the Mashariki Research and Policy Centre\, Kenya spoke on: Building Peace in South Sudan: An Assessment of the IGAD’S Contributions and Challenges. This paper acknowledged the role of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) in various phases of the peacebuilding process in South Sudan. The paper appraised IGAD’S contributions and challenges that the sub-regional body continued to face in on-going peace processes\, particularly in South Sudan. It in a diagnosis of the state of the play in South Sudan by highlighting statebuilding challenges including poor governance and elites’ power contestation. Additionally\, the paper offered a series of suggestions on how to overcome the current peace impasse with lessons for IGAD and the country. \nThe presentations were followed by robust discussions\, questions and interactions between the paper presenters and participants\, around issues linked to African agency in relation to conflict prevention\, peacebuilding\, and development. There was also a lot of interest in the degree of agency of Africa institutions as the main drivers (as opposed to international actors) in driving policies linked to peace\, security and development in the Horn of Africa/East Africa. The conference also provided an excellent space to network with potentials for research and policy work collaboration. \nBy John Mwangi
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/report-of-the-ssrc-sponsored-panel-at-the-amplifying-african-voices-for-strategic-action-afsa-conference-held-on-31st-october-i-st-november-2024-at-strathmore-university-kenya-organized/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241113T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241113T170000
DTSTAMP:20241209T192138Z
CREATED:20241209T155433Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241209T192138Z
UID:10000878-1731484800-1731517200@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Trendlines and Transformations in African Democratic Governance: Lessons for 21st-Century US-Africa Relations
DESCRIPTION:November 13\, 2024 | Washington DC \nOn November 13\, 2024\, the Social Science Research Council’s (SSRC) African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen)\, in partnership with the Wilson Center’s Africa Program\, hosted a policy dialogue at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington DC. This inaugural session of the “Trendlines and Transformations in African Democratic Governance: Lessons for 21st-Century US-Africa Relations” series brought together African and US scholars and experts to discuss political developments across Africa\, exploring strategies for strengthening democracy in the region.   \nRobert Litwak\, Senior Vice President and Director of International Studies of the Woodrow Wilson Center\, opened the session by emphasizing the shared missions of the APN and Next Gen Program and the Wilson Center’s Africa Program in fostering African expertise in US-Africa policy discussions through research and dialogue. He also framed the conversation as one that focuses on how governance trends across Africa intersect with major political events and daily civic engagements.   \nOpening remarks were given by Dafna Hochman Rand\, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy\, Human Rights\, and Labor\, US Department of State. She stressed the importance of rethinking the US’s approach—its ‘toolkit’—to democracy promotion strategies to address new challenges and empower local actors on the continent. She posed three critical questions to the panel: 1) How can we consider the impact of growing geopolitical competition on democracy promotion in Africa? 2) How can the US and other actors better support successful democracies in Africa? 3) How can the US modernize its tools for promoting governance?   \nCyril Obi\, Program Director of the APN and Next Gen Program\, followed with the program’s objective to produce high-quality research on conflict-affected countries and connect them to policy discussions and conversations. He highlighted democracy’s resilience on the continent despite the present challenges and introduced the concept of democratic dividends. An overarching question was posed: how can African people and regional bodies effectively engage in democracy promotion\, and what role should the international community play in supporting this?   \nDirector of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program\, Oge Onubogu\, invited the panel to comment on the disconnect between citizen values and aspirations for democracy and the practice of democracy on the continent.   \nRawia Tawfik\, a former APN fellow\, and Visiting Associate Professor\, Council on African Studies\, MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale University\, emphasized that the wave of democratic protests in Africa often drew connections between securing fundamental freedoms through democratic governance and the management of the continent’s economies. She highlighted the difficulty of building a lasting democracy without a robust institutional framework.   \nCharles Ukeje\, a former APN fellow\, and Professor of International Relations at Obafemi Awolowo University\, Ile-Ife\, Nigeria\, spoke of the material base required for popular support for democracy\, as well as the erosion of this material base\, which has reduced the capacity of social actors at the forefront of change: the African middle class. This erosion\, he asserted\, is contributing to the shrinking of civic spaces across the continent.   \nLatifah Kasozi Namutebi\, a Wilson Center’s Southern Voices Network for Peacebuilding (SVNP) Scholar and Strategic Partnership and Advocacy Officer at the Women’s International Peace Centre\, Uganda\, drew on the 2021 General Ugandan Election\, where digital spaces were used to engage with political actors in real-time to shed light on the pivotal role technology has played in creating spaces amidst shrinking civil spaces. She emphasized the importance of not focusing solely on the rising threat of disinformation and misinformation\, asserting that we can continue countering them through community efforts and fact-checking.   \nPeter Lewis\, Warren Weinstein Chair of African Studies at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies\, and former Wilson Center Africa Program fellow\, highlighted Africans’ commitment to democracy\, which still surpasses percentages in Asia\, Latin America\, and the Middle East.    \nOge Onubogu\, Director of Wilson Center’s Africa program introduced a new line of questioning centered on new actors that are reshaping the geopolitical and strategic competition involving established and emerging international actors on the continent. Specifically posing a question to Professor Tawfik\, she inquired about how the strengthening of democratic governance can be considered on the continent\, given these actors’ influences.   \nProfessor Tawfik used Sudan and the Horn of Africa as case studies\, explaining that the incursion of international and regional actors has contributed to 1) support of dictatorial regimes and 2) support of one side over another in conflicts. Professor Tawfik suggested that different countries understand these actors’ interests and exert sufficient pressure to influence their course of action. She also urged the AU to be more consistent regarding actions taken against violators of unconstitutional changes in government.    \nThe Director of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program then posed a question on how the toolkit for engaging the continent can be updated to represent the interests of citizens\, given the fading legitimacy of RECs\, to Charles Ukeje.      \nProfessor Ukeje described the disconnect between the commitments made by the AU and other RECs to uphold the principles of democracy over the last decade and their implementation. He highlighted West African citizens’ disconnect from ECOWAS\, an institution that has become more of a club of governing elites. He suggested that ECOWAS and other RECs carry out institutional reforms\, especially considering the cross-border challenges facing Africa\, including banditry\, violent extremism\, and climate change.     \nDuring the Q&A session\, panelists emphasized shifting US support for democracy in Africa from propping up governments to empowering citizens and civil society. They highlighted the need to address systemic challenges\, like election manipulation through the judiciary\, and stressed the importance of involving African youth in strengthening governance. The crucial role the African private sector can play in the political space—particularly through strategic coalitions with government and business interests to foster growth\, improve infrastructure\, secure property rights\, and align institutions to attract local and foreign businesses—was also underscored.      \nA recording of the panel discussion can be found here.    \n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/trendlines-and-transformations-in-african-democratic-governance-lessons-for-21st-century-us-africa-relations/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241120T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241120T113000
DTSTAMP:20241112T150212Z
CREATED:20241024T155735Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241112T150212Z
UID:10000874-1732096800-1732102200@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Reforming Tech and Democracy Programs for the Global Majority
DESCRIPTION:Virtual Launch Event of the Study Custom Built / Feito Sob Medida \nHow can tech and democracy programs better serve the needs and challenges of Global Majority countries? What are divergence points between Global North and Global Majority tech justice advocacies? How are so-called “whole-of-society” tech and democracy coalitions guilty of knowledge and data extractivism?   \nThis event launches an important new study entitled Custom Built / Feito Sob Medida: Reforming Tech and Democracy Programs for the Global Majority. Retelling both frustrations and creative aspirations of over 100 frontliners of election integrity and media freedom initiatives from Brazil to India to Kenya to the Philippines\, the study discusses the “illusion of inclusion” in the tech and democracy space. Overdetermined by Global North funding priorities and governments’ securitization agenda\, tech and democracy projects are often experienced in the Global Majority as top-down and tools- and tech-first rather than community-driven\, healing-oriented\, and custom built\, or in Portuguese\, feito sob medida. \nIn this webinar\, we will be joined by Marcelo Alves (Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro)\, Jonathan Corpus Ong (UMass Amherst)\, and Raquel Recuero (Federal University of Pelotas)\, who will discuss their vision for a more globally minded and community-driven tech justice agenda that centers Global Majority creative capacities and distinct challenges of institutional capture and fractured civil society.  \nThis discussion will be moderated by GloTech’s Ethan Zuckerman (UMass Amherst). \nThis study is out and available for download at www.glotechlab.net. \nExpert Discussants:\nProf Herman Wasserman (Stellenbosch University\, South Africa)\nDr Nina Santos (Desinformante\, Brazil)\nPaco Camacho (The Asia Foundation\, Philippines)\nSabhanaz Rashid Diya (Tech Global Institute)\nDinita Putri (Luminate Group)
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/reforming-tech-and-democracy-programs-for-the-global-majority/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241206T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241206T170000
DTSTAMP:20240815T163912Z
CREATED:20240815T142201Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240815T163912Z
UID:10000869-1733472000-1733504400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:2024 CUF
DESCRIPTION:Research to Solve Problems\nDecember 6\, 2024\nOn December 6\, 2024\, the Social Science Research Council will convene institutional leaders from the College and University Fund for the Social Sciences\, together with leaders of philanthropic organizations and federal science agencies\, to share insights about how to foster social and behavioral science that helps policymakers solve pressing social problems. What kinds of partnerships\, funding streams\, and administrative supports can sustain a pipeline of knowledge production and transfer aimed at public sector innovation? What can we learn\, if anything\, from the research infrastructure dedicated to supporting knowledge production and transfer for private sector innovation? Are there good examples of research-to-policy pipelines on our campuses? \nContact Us
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/2024-cuf/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241206T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241206T170000
DTSTAMP:20250106T162752Z
CREATED:20240515T151154Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250106T162752Z
UID:10000861-1733472000-1733504400@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:2024 College and University Fund Conference: Research to Solve Problems
DESCRIPTION:Research to Solve Problems\nDecember 6\, 2024\nOn December 6\, 2024\, the Social Science Research Council convened institutional leaders from the College and University Fund for the Social Sciences\, together with leaders of philanthropic organizations and federal science agencies\, to share insights about how to foster social and behavioral science that helps policymakers solve pressing social problems. What kinds of partnerships\, funding vehicles\, and administrative support can sustain a pipeline of knowledge production and transfer leading to public sector innovation? What can we learn\, if anything\, from the research infrastructure dedicated to supporting knowledge production and transfer for private sector innovation? Are there good examples of research-to-policy pipelines on our campuses?
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/2024-college-and-university-fund-conference-research-to-solve-problems/
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241212
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241215
DTSTAMP:20250109T193254Z
CREATED:20250109T193254Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250109T193254Z
UID:10000879-1733961600-1734220799@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:APN and Next Gen-Sponsored Panel at the 2024 ASA Annual Meeting:  Chicago\, Illinois
DESCRIPTION:The Social Science Research Council’s African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and the Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen) program sponsored a panel of selective current and former fellows\, “More than Local Expressions of the Global? Interrogating Emerging Patterns and Practices of Conflict\, Peace and Development in Africa\,” featuring presentations based on the fellows’ research findings. The panel was held during the 2024 African Studies Association (ASA) Annual Meeting in Chicago\, USA\, from December 12 to 14\, 2024.  \nChaired by Dr. Cyril Obi\, Program Director of APN and Next Gen\, the panel addressed how local cases of conflict\, peace\, and development in Africa interact with\, resist\, adapt\, and are shaped by global structures\, norms\, politics\, and actors. Presenters interrogated the dominant narratives\, concepts\, theories\, and emerging patterns of such relationships by identifying cases of local appropriation and resistance to dominant global narratives\, meaning-making\, and relationships to demonstrate African agency in peace\, security\, and development within Africa and at the global level.    \nIn War\, Peacemaking\, and the Global-Local Friction in the 2020–2022 Northern Ethiopia Conflict\, Dr. Alagaw Kifle presented a study of the complex and diverse local and global actors entangled in the peacemaking process in the contested area\, Raya\, in the context of the Amhara-Tigray Civil War in Ethiopia. He noted that the diverse responses from local\, diasporic\, and multi-lateral communities to the Western actors involved in the peace agreement are to be found in their diverse interests and agendas. The diverse perspectives on the international and national actors have resulted in local and diasporic communities organizing movements to support or reject the agreement.  \nDr. Sokfa Francis John’s presentation on Digitally Offline\, Globally Connected: Dynamics of Digital Peacebuilding and Localization in Africa drew on local digital and non-digital peacebuilding cases in Kenyan and Nigerian contexts. He critiqued hegemonic narratives of development as part of the analysis of the opportunities and limitations of current digital peacebuilding. The cases examined demonstrated how peacebuilders mutually constitute the local and digital\, even suggested that the digital space can be viewed as a flexible and adaptable tool for peacebuilding work\, underscoring the agency of local peacebuilders in shaping the local and the digital.   \nIn Decolonizing Mediation and Peacebuilding in Post-Electoral Conflicts in Kenya\, Dr. Jacinta Maweu questioned the degree of success of the peace mediation of post-2008 electoral violence in Kenya. She observed that the majority of elections since the 2008 peace mediation have been followed by violence. She unpacked the triggers of cyclical post-electoral violence\, including weaponized ethnicity\, land disputes\, and the winner-takes-all electoral system. In conclusion\, she argued that cosmetic solutions would continue to serve the narrow interests of the elite and not address the root causes of the post-election conflicts.   \nMedina Moosa presented the findings of a chapter of her doctoral dissertation\, Visions of Jihad: South African liberation struggles\, apartheid counterinsurgency through the movement of the Afghanistan Mujahedeen to Southern Africa in the 1980s. The presentation conceptualized Jihad as a universal emancipatory ideology that was part of a larger tapestry of anti-apartheid struggles in South Africa in the 1980s. She described how locals appropriated diverse international ideas and transformed them locally during the Cold War era. This period produced novel conceptions of Jihad in the South African anti-apartheid struggle\, highlighting what is often considered as Muslim politics in the struggle.    \nDr. Abdullahi Hamisu Shehu’s presentation on Trans-national Politics and the Conflict of Ideologies: Exploring the Complexity of Iran’s\, Saudi’s and Nigeria’s Influences and Reactions Over the ‘Zaria Massacre’ interrogated the multiple actors influencing and responding to the 2015 Zaria Massacre when hundreds of Shi’a Muslim activists were killed in Northern Nigeria by state security forces. He argued that Saudi Arabian and Iranian ideological imperialism and rivalry had resulted in heightened Shi’a and Sunni tension in the region. The events in Zaria directly responded to political issues and connected to the trends in the Middle East. He concluded that these events are part of a proxy ideological contest of international actors playing out through religious communities locally.   \nThe panel presentation concluded with discussant Dr. Rosette Sifa Vuninga responding to the perspectives on the new patterns of conflict taking place in Africa. She reviewed the emerging groups and conflict actors\, differing political goals\, the drivers of conflict trajectories\, and war economies influencing the trends\, as well as their links to global actors and discourses. She highlighted the international diaspora’s increasing engagement in the politics of their homeland\, contributing to the de-localization of conflict. She\, however\, requested panelists to address the alternatives to the ongoing patterns of global-local relations they critiqued\, such as the degree of international actors’ involvement and the extent to which Africans are shaping the local\, regional\, and global contributions to peacebuilding.  \nBelow\, Dr. Rosette Sifa Vuninga answers the question\, “What have you learned by attending the 2024 ASA Annual Meeting?” \nhttps://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Dr.-Rosette-Sifa-Vuninga-for-ASA-Summary.mp4 \n  \n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/apn-and-next-gen-sponsored-panel-at-the-2024-asa-annual-meeting-chicago-illinois/
LOCATION:Chicago\, IL
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250114
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250115
DTSTAMP:20250129T201349Z
CREATED:20250128T213148Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250129T201349Z
UID:10000885-1736812800-1736899199@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Trendlines and Transformations in African Democratic Governance: Lessons for 21st-Century US-Africa Relations\, Part 2
DESCRIPTION:January 14\, 2025 | Washington DC  \nThe second session of the Trendlines and Transformations in African Democratic Governance: Lessons for 21st-Century US-Africa Relations series took place on January 14th\, 2025\, at the Wilson Center in Washington\, DC. This collaborative effort between the Social Science Research Council’s (SSRC) African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen)\, and the Wilson Center’s Africa Program brought together experts to discuss the geopolitical shifts and increasing prominence of middle and emerging powers on the African continent\, particularly its implications for democratic governance\, security issues\, and Africa-US relations.   \nCyril Obi\, Program Director of the APN and Next Gen Program\, emphasized the program’s focus on supporting high-quality policy-relevant research by African scholars based in Africa\, aligning this with the activities of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program to contextualize the organizations’ partnership. He summarized the output from the inaugural session: a set of recommendations for the incoming US administration to have a bold approach towards democratic engagement on the African continent. He asked the panelists to reflect on how Africa’s shifting alliances might impact its democratic governance and relations with the US\, and how Western powers should respond to maintain influence\, build trust\, and demonstrate reliability in their engagements with Africa.   \nOge Onubogu\, Director of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program\, highlighted the importance of timing the conversation to coincide with the incoming Trump administration in the US\, the emergence of new leadership at the African Union\, and South Africa’s assumption of the presidency of the G20. She invited the speakers to reflect on how the incoming US administration and African institutions can position themselves to collaborate effectively.  \nFonteh Akum\, Executive Director of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) Africa\, outlined four pillars for engagement between the US and specific African countries: security cooperation\, consolidating democratic governance\, supporting economic development\, and the crystalizing of African agency by tapping into Africa’s demographic power (underlining the potential of Africa’s youthful population)\, and by bolstering investments in education and capacity building.   \nShifting the conversation to the mixed outcomes of elections in Southern Africa last year\, Director Onubogu asked for insights on the current situation in Mozambique and the potential role the incoming US administration can play in addressing the country’s post-election crisis.   \nSiphokazi Magadla\,  Associate Professor of Political and International Studies at Rhodes University\, South Africa\, discussed the lack of democratic norms in Southern Africa—a region historically held together by its legacies of national liberation but witnessing shifts in democratic trends with the election of new governments. She explained that young people were showing liberation movements turned ruling parties that they could be voted out if they failed to deliver on improving the quality of lives of citizens. On the election of Namibia’s first female president\, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah\, Professor Magadla suggested she be part of a movement to re-energize global women’s movements in Africa and beyond. Professor Magadla also urged the US to exert greater pressure on the SADC to become more active and strengthen democratic governance in the region.   \nhttps://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Siphokazi.mp4 \nOge Onubogu invited questions from members of the panel\, including concrete recommendations on how the incoming US government can partner with African citizens and institutions to address the concern of democracy being perceived as elite-driven and disconnected from the people.  \n \nIbrahim Bangura\, Associate Professor in the Department of Peace and Conflict Studies at Fourah Bay College\, University of Sierra Leone\, pointed to the weakness of democratic culture across the continent by observing that its principles have not been upheld by leaders\, most of whom ignore the rights of their citizens. He attributed the resurgence of military coup d’états to political disenfranchisement and corruption. He suggested that the US support African voices fighting for democracy\, engage with regional African institutions\, and help strengthen democratic institutions that put power in the people’s hands. He also suggested the US invest in socio-economic development by fostering democratic culture in regional organizations\, civil society\, and education\, while leveraging the African diaspora.   \nhttps://www.ssrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Ibrahim.mp4 \n\nFinally\, Oge Onubogu raised the issue of Africa’s reassessment of its security partnerships\, prompting the panel to discuss how the incoming US administration can establish itself as a dependable democratic partner despite growing competition from regional\, middle\, and emerging powers.   \nJoseph Siegle\, Director for Research at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies\, National Defense University\, highlighted Africa’s diverse security environment\, noting key areas such as the Sahel\, Lake Chad Basin\, Somalia\, and Northern Mozambique\, where violent extremism is often linked to transnational criminal networks. He discussed the recent coups in countries like Somalia\, Niger\, and Burkina Faso\, which have led to alternative security arrangements for regime survival\, particularly with Russia\, and emphasized the growing challenges of building trust and security capacity in a region increasingly affected by instability and conflict. He cautioned against US competition with Russia for influence\, recommending that the US work to build African capacity by strengthening security institutions\, military professionalism\, civil-military relations\, and regional coalitions.   \nDuring the Q&A portion of the event\, members of the audience posed questions concerning Africa’s security\, democratic governance\, and options for the use of soft power in US-Africa engagements. There were also questions about the challenges in rebuilding the continent in the context of the geopolitical changes\, which some suggested necessitates the US to assess the role of higher education institutions in fostering political engagement and people-to-people integration\, empowering Africa’s young population while centering African agency.   \nA live stream of the event can be found here.  \n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/trendlines-and-transformations-in-african-democratic-governance-lessons-for-21st-century-us-africa-relations-part-2/
CATEGORIES:Africa
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250128T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250128T170000
DTSTAMP:20250128T212308Z
CREATED:20250128T212308Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250128T212308Z
UID:10000884-1738051200-1738083600@www.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Trendlines and Transformations in African Democratic Governance: Lessons for 21st-Century US-Africa Relations
DESCRIPTION:November 13\, 2024 | Washington DC \nOn November 13\, 2024\, the Social Science Research Council’s (SSRC) African Peacebuilding Network (APN) and Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa (Next Gen)\, in partnership with the Wilson Center’s Africa Program\, hosted a policy dialogue at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington DC. This inaugural session of the “Trendlines and Transformations in African Democratic Governance: Lessons for 21st-Century US-Africa Relations” series brought together African and US scholars and experts to discuss political developments across Africa\, exploring strategies for strengthening democracy in the region.   \nRobert Litwak\, Senior Vice President and Director of International Studies of the Woodrow Wilson Center\, opened the session by emphasizing the shared missions of the APN and Next Gen Program and the Wilson Center’s Africa Program in fostering African expertise in US-Africa policy discussions through research and dialogue. He also framed the conversation as one that focuses on how governance trends across Africa intersect with major political events and daily civic engagements.   \nOpening remarks were given by Dafna Hochman Rand\, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy\, Human Rights\, and Labor\, US Department of State. She stressed the importance of rethinking the US’s approach—its ‘toolkit’—to democracy promotion strategies to address new challenges and empower local actors on the continent. She posed three critical questions to the panel: 1) How can we consider the impact of growing geopolitical competition on democracy promotion in Africa? 2) How can the US and other actors better support successful democracies in Africa? 3) How can the US modernize its tools for promoting governance?   \nCyril Obi\, Program Director of the APN and Next Gen Program\, followed with the program’s objective to produce high-quality research on conflict-affected countries and connect them to policy discussions and conversations. He highlighted democracy’s resilience on the continent despite the present challenges and introduced the concept of democratic dividends. An overarching question was posed: how can African people and regional bodies effectively engage in democracy promotion\, and what role should the international community play in supporting this?   \nDirector of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program\, Oge Onubogu\, invited the panel to comment on the disconnect between citizen values and aspirations for democracy and the practice of democracy on the continent.   \nRawia Tawfik\, a former APN fellow\, and Visiting Associate Professor\, Council on African Studies\, MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale University\, emphasized that the wave of democratic protests in Africa often drew connections between securing fundamental freedoms through democratic governance and the management of the continent’s economies. She highlighted the difficulty of building a lasting democracy without a robust institutional framework.   \nCharles Ukeje\, a former APN fellow\, and Professor of International Relations at Obafemi Awolowo University\, Ile-Ife\, Nigeria\, spoke of the material base required for popular support for democracy\, as well as the erosion of this material base\, which has reduced the capacity of social actors at the forefront of change: the African middle class. This erosion\, he asserted\, is contributing to the shrinking of civic spaces across the continent.   \nLatifah Kasozi Namutebi\, a Wilson Center’s Southern Voices Network for Peacebuilding (SVNP) Scholar and Strategic Partnership and Advocacy Officer at the Women’s International Peace Centre\, Uganda\, drew on the 2021 General Ugandan Election\, where digital spaces were used to engage with political actors in real-time to shed light on the pivotal role technology has played in creating spaces amidst shrinking civil spaces. She emphasized the importance of not focusing solely on the rising threat of disinformation and misinformation\, asserting that we can continue countering them through community efforts and fact-checking.   \nPeter Lewis\, Warren Weinstein Chair of African Studies at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies\, and former Wilson Center Africa Program fellow\, highlighted Africans’ commitment to democracy\, which still surpasses percentages in Asia\, Latin America\, and the Middle East.    \nOge Onubogu\, Director of Wilson Center’s Africa program introduced a new line of questioning centered on new actors that are reshaping the geopolitical and strategic competition involving established and emerging international actors on the continent. Specifically posing a question to Professor Tawfik\, she inquired about how the strengthening of democratic governance can be considered on the continent\, given these actors’ influences.   \nProfessor Tawfik used Sudan and the Horn of Africa as case studies\, explaining that the incursion of international and regional actors has contributed to 1) support of dictatorial regimes and 2) support of one side over another in conflicts. Professor Tawfik suggested that different countries understand these actors’ interests and exert sufficient pressure to influence their course of action. She also urged the AU to be more consistent regarding actions taken against violators of unconstitutional changes in government.    \nThe Director of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program then posed a question on how the toolkit for engaging the continent can be updated to represent the interests of citizens\, given the fading legitimacy of RECs\, to Charles Ukeje.      \nProfessor Ukeje described the disconnect between the commitments made by the AU and other RECs to uphold the principles of democracy over the last decade and their implementation. He highlighted West African citizens’ disconnect from ECOWAS\, an institution that has become more of a club of governing elites. He suggested that ECOWAS and other RECs carry out institutional reforms\, especially considering the cross-border challenges facing Africa\, including banditry\, violent extremism\, and climate change.     \nDuring the Q&A session\, panelists emphasized shifting US support for democracy in Africa from propping up governments to empowering citizens and civil society. They highlighted the need to address systemic challenges\, like election manipulation through the judiciary\, and stressed the importance of involving African youth in strengthening governance. The crucial role the African private sector can play in the political space—particularly through strategic coalitions with government and business interests to foster growth\, improve infrastructure\, secure property rights\, and align institutions to attract local and foreign businesses—was also underscored.      \nA recording of the panel discussion can be found here.    \n 
URL:https://www.ssrc.org/events/trendlines-and-transformations-in-african-democratic-governance-lessons-for-21st-century-us-africa-relations-2/
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR