This rapid evidence review collates available evidence on digital infrastructure interventions to address climate adaptation and mitigation needs drawing on lessons from across the world to inform the Ethiopian context. The review draws upon an expanding evidence base that includes academic and grey literature. The evidence base is evolving with an increasing range of ...» more
Can Education for out of School Children in South Sudan have Peacebuilding/Social Cohesion Benefits?
This K4DD Rapid Evidence Review explores the potential peacebuilding/social cohesion benefits of targeting out of school children (OOSC) in South Sudan through community-based education activities. It focuses on the targeting methods, activities, and approaches taken by Education in Emergencies (EIE) programmes. ...» more
Varieties of state capture
Zenobia Ismail Abstract: The literature on state capture is growing and encompasses more countries and contexts. This paper argues that it is time to consider varieties of capture that have different trajectories and outcomes. Two factors, the level of democracy and the strength of institutions, are proposed as starting points for thinking about varieties of capture. Using ...» more
Responses to conflict, irregular migration, human trafficking and illicit flows along transnational pathways in West Africa
This paper explores the links between conflict, irregular migration, human trafficking and other illicit flows along transnational pathways in West Africa – focusing on Niger, Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso and Libya as well as the responses to these. The West Africa region is the site of numerous intrastate conflicts, which have transnational dimensions. Even were there is ...» more
Cross-border pastoral mobility and cross-border conflict in Africa – patterns and policy responses
Pastoralism is estimated to be the main livelihood of 268 million people in Africa, and is critically dependent on mobility which facilitates the use of transient resources in areas of high and seasonal rainfall, ecological, and nutritional variability. These landscapes are not confined within state boundaries but require cross-border movement. This rapid literature review ...» more
Maintaining basic state functions and service delivery during escalating crises
This rapid literature review explores how to maintain essential state functions and basic service delivery during escalating conflict situations. It draws on literature and ideas from various overlapping agendas including development and humanitarian nexus; development, humanitarian and peacebuilding nexus (the “triple nexus”); fragile states; state-building; conflict ...» more
Promotion of Freedom of Religion or Belief
Freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) is a fundamental human right. However, the general global the trend in recent years is towards increased FoRB violations by both government and non-government actors. Notable exceptions are Sudan and Uzbekistan, which have shown significant improvement in promoting FoRB, while smaller-scale positive developments have been seen in a number ...» more
Gender, countering violent extremism and women, peace and security in Kenya
Kenya ranks 109 out of 153 countries in the Global Gender Gap Report 2020, with a score of 0.671. There are significant inequalities between males and females in education attainment, health outcomes, representation in parliament, and labour force participation. This Factsheet outlines some of the top-line information on gender, countering violent extremism and women, peace and ...» more
Donor Support for Climate Change Initiatives in the Middle East and North Africa
Donors in the Middle East and North Africa’s (MENA) climate and environment space include both bilateral donors such as France and Germany, multilateral development banks and multilateral climate funds. France and Germany are key bilateral donors to the region, supporting both single country and regional programmes. Many donors, including the EU, France, Germany, the ...» more
Gender and countering violent extremism (CVE) in the Kenya Mozambique region
This evidence synthesis drew on a mixture of academic and grey literature. While the literature on Kenyan women and Al-Shabaab was quite extensive (albeit with gaps, e.g. on returnees), nothing was found on women and Ansar al-Sunnah/violent extremist groups operating in northeastern Mozambique and the Mozambique-Tanzania cross-border region. This report should be read in ...» more
The Development Impact of Chinese Development Investments in Africa
This Emerging Issues report examines a number of popular narratives about the impacts of Chinese investment on economic development in Africa. Popular narratives include Chinese infrastructure investments that have weak links to growth, Chinese investment leads to limited job creation in host countries, and Chinese development projects lead to environmental degradation ...» more
War Economy in North East Nigeria
This rapid literature review collates academic and grey literature pertaining to the war economy in North-East Nigeria. The review finds the evidence base on this subject to be limited and disjointed. There are few regional analyses focussed on this issue, with those that exist approaching the subject from different thematic or sectoral positions. Sub-national (i.e. ...» more
Coping mechanisms in South Sudan in relation to different types of shock
This rapid evidence review provides an assessment of negative and positive coping mechanisms of different groups (based on wealth (below the poverty line/elites), gender, age, (dis)abilities, geographies (rural/urban), and ethnicity of people in South Sudan in relation to different types of shock. It draws predominantly on a range of grey literature from multinational and ...» more
Workplace-based Learning and Youth Employment in Africa
Workplace-based learning is a supply-side approach to youth employment that includes practical or on-the-job training that is usually provided through an apprenticeship, internship, learnership , work placement or other practical training component of a vocational education or training programme. For the workplace-based learning approach to be effective, it requires ...» more
Media/communications on peacebuilding/social cohesion/changing prevailing narratives on conflict
The media can play a positive role in peacebuilding/conflict prevention. Recognition of this has led to increasing programmes on media/communications and peacebuilding, with common interventions including training of journalists, and development of pro-peace programme content. However, there are significant challenges in designing and implementing such programmes, and even more ...» more
Justice systems in the Sahel
This review looks at justice provision in four countries in the Sahel: Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad. All feature formal (state) justice systems alongside customary/religious justice, with the latter typically being seen by citizens as more accessible, cheaper and less corrupt. State justice systems in all the countries face similar challenges: corruption, resource and ...» more
The use of fossil fuels in the Middle East and North Africa
This rapid literature review collates evidence from academic and grey literature on the use of fossil fuels in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). MENA, for much of its recent history, has been known for its energy wealth. The region is, however, significantly diverse, not only in terms of economic and political structures, but also in terms of energy resource and ...» more
Responding to popular protests in the MENA region
This review looks at government responses to violent protests in a selection of countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Focusing on the 2011 Arab Spring protests, it finds that the initial response of most regimes was violent repression – Tunisia where the president stepped down, and Morocco and Jordan where the respective monarchies promised reform, are the only ...» more
Social and behaviour change communication interventions in Mozambique
Social and behaviour change communication (SBCC) is the use of communication to change behaviours by positively influencing knowledge, attitudes and social norms at the individual and community level. Approaches to SBCC include, but are not limited to: media campaigns, peer educators and mentors, small group sessions, community dialogues and events, and digital tools. This ...» more
Fossils fuels and job creation in Africa
Fossil fuel development, including oil, gas and coal, can provide or support employment in a number of different ways. Estimates for Africa’s extractive sector as a whole put it as employing less than 1% of Africa’s workforce (Fine et al., 2012). However, it is hard to determine the number of jobs supported directly or indirectly by the fossil fuels industry in different ...» more
