What are some of the internal and external challenges currently facing the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS), and how has it responded to them? How can donors promote security most effectively in the area? This study finds that the GoSS faces a combination of internal divisions and external pressures from an increasingly hostile National Congress Party (NCP) in the North. The ...» more
Library
This e-library contains more than 4500 external publications on governance, social development, conflict and humanitarian issues. It includes academic and grey literature selected for its basis in good quality research and coverage of a range of perspectives. Policy-oriented summaries of each document are provided, plus links to the full text.
Combating Pirates of the Gulf of Aden: The Djibouti Code and the Somali Coast Guard
How can maritime piracy in the Gulf of Aden be addressed? Twenty thousand ships pass through the Gulf of Aden each year, transporting cargo that includes 12 percent of the world's daily oil supply. This article outlines the challenges of Somali piracy and highlights the need for the capacity building of local maritime forces and for regional and international coordination. The ...» more
Access to Justice in a Post-conflict State: Donor-supported Multidimensional Peacekeeping in Southern Sudan
Who are the main providers of justice and police services in post-conflict Southern Sudan? Why is a focus on state justice unworkable in Southern Sudan and other post-conflict countries? This article examines justice and policing in Southern Sudan and questions the assumptions that underlie donor-driven access to justice and rule of law programmes. The key issue is to ...» more
Police Reform in Southern Sudan
What are the security issues in Southern Sudan? What reforms can promote a more community-friendly approach to policing in the region? This study examines the policy implications of community perceptions of policing in Southern Sudan. Significant security challenges still remain in Southern Sudan. Despite this, the rule of law sector and the police have been neglected in ...» more
The Origins of the Intelligence System of Kenya
How did Kenya's intelligence service emerge? What challenges does it face? After the colonial government established a 'Special Branch' in the police force to gather intelligence on political matters, Kenya's intelligence service developed a reputation for oppression. It was only when the National Security Intelligence Service Act was passed in 1998 that it began to institute ...» more
Securitization and Desecuritization: Female Soldiers and the Reconstruction of Women in Post-Conflict Sierra Leone
Why have international disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) programmes ignored the role of women as soldiers in war? This article finds that the ideal of the female war victim has limited the ways in which the needs of female combatants are addressed by DDR programmes in Sierra Leone. This error has sacrificed both gender equality and programme effectiveness. Men ...» more
Intelligence Sector Reform in Uganda: Dynamics, Aspects and Prospects
Uganda's post-independence history is largely characterised by military regimes using the intelligence services to maintain their power and to intimidate, harass and execute political opponents. What has been achieved in reforming Uganda's intelligence sector? What challenges remain to be overcome? This chapter finds that while human rights abuses have significantly decreased, ...» more
Changing the Intelligence Dynamics in Africa: The Ghana Experience
How were the challenges of intelligence reform managed in Ghana's broader security sector reform process? This chapter finds that Ghana's intelligence reform was the result of an incremental, deliberate process of institution-building, personnel development and appropriate legislation. Ghana's security transformation was driven by political, economic and security conditions ...» more
Oversight of the Liberian National Police
How should police oversight be established in Liberia? This study analyses the range of potential oversight mechanisms, examples from other African countries, and Liberia's situation. It recommends a government-chaired, mixed-membership, multi-tiered system with a broad mandate for enhancing police professionalism and assuring the public. This system should be clear, relatively ...» more
The Political Economy of DDR in Liberia: A Gendered Critique
How is post-conflict reintegration in Liberia affected by gender bias? How can such bias be overcome? This article argues that underlying the Liberian DDR process are gendered assumptions, such as that the idleness of male ex-combatants is a security threat, and that men's reintegration is more important than that of women. Reintegration programming has privileged male access ...» more
Parliamentary Oversight of the Security Sector: Lessons from Ghana
Does Ghana’s Parliament have the necessary powers, capacity and political will to provide effective oversight of the security sector? What role can civil society organisations and regional cooperation and security architecture play in relation to parliamentary oversight of the security sector? This paper from the Centre on International Cooperation examines the functionality ...» more
Liberia: Parliamentary Oversight and Lessons Learned from Internationalized Security Sector Reform
To what extent does Liberia’s legislature have the necessary authority, ability and attitude to provide effective security sector oversight? What effect has international involvement had on security sector reform in Liberia? This paper from the Centre on International Cooperation examines internationalised SSR and legislative oversight of the security sector in Liberia. It ...» more
ECOWAS and Civil Society Movements in West Africa
Why and how has West Africa's approach to security become less focused on the state and more focused on human security? This article explains the transformation in this sub-region's security agenda and examines the evolving relationship between the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and civil society movements. It finds that civil society engages effectively ...» more
Resistance to Reform; Submission to Status Quo: Security Sector Reform in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka's security sector is geared towards violence and offers stiff resistance to reform. Bodies set up to implement SSR have been afflicted by political interference, lack of powers and resources, and lack of seriousness about the reform process. Wide-ranging reforms of the Constitution, an active civil society, and continued external support are needed to achieve ...» more
Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Security Sector Reform in Sri Lanka
This chapter analyses Sri Lanka's security sector and the conflict's consequences for the security apparatus. It discusses security sector governance and highlights challenges and entry points for SSR. An attempt at holistic SSR in Sri Lanka in 2003 failed as a result of internal political rivalries and the politicisation of certain elements within the media. Operational ...» more
Security Sector Reforms in Pakistan: Challenges, Remedies and Future Prospects
Why is Security Sector Reform (SSR) so critical for Pakistan? What are its SSR challenges how can these be addressed? Pakistan has suffered recurrent political upheavals and security threats that have undermined attempts to build strong democratic institutions. SSR efforts have been hindered by poor governance, by a lack of governance reform and accountability and by civilian ...» more
Security Sector Reforms in Nepal: If Not Now, When?
Why is Security Sector Reform (SSR) so urgent for Nepal? What issues need particular attention in the proposed SSR? This paper examines the history, need for, and challenges facing SSR in Nepal following the 2006 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). Ten years of civil war revealed serious shortcomings in Nepal's security apparatus. The CPA ended the Maoist insurgency, but other ...» more
Leading Ahead, Yet Far Behind: Governance of the Security Sector in India
How is India reforming its security sector and what are the challenges facing security sector reform (SSR) in the country? There is no comprehensive single SSR process in India, but reforms are underway in all key security sectors. These reforms have their root in developments after India's nuclear tests in 1998. They are self-driven, reactive, and piecemeal. Integrated, ...» more
Security Sector Reform in Bangladesh
What is the present state of Bangladesh's security sector and its oversight mechanisms? What are the obstacles to reform? This paper focuses on the Bangladesh Army, the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), the Bangladesh Police and the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). It finds that the security sector, especially the police, is not accountable, transparent or efficient. The development of an ...» more
State Building and Post-Conflict Demilitarization: Military Downsizing in Bosnia and Herzegovina
What has been the impact of military downsizing on broader state building agendas in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)? This article argues that state-led demilitarisation in BiH has had a negative effect on public support for the country's ethnically fragmented administration and has undermined the legitimacy of the central state. This suggests the need to consider the state ...» more
