Find out more about the work of the ESRC-funded Centre for Public Authority and International Development.
GalleryFootball as reconciliation in the aftermath of war
As northern Uganda continues to recover gradually from the LRA war, peace and youth interventions using sports are playing a vital role. Francis Aloh, a former Ugandan football star and LSE researcher working with the Centre for Public Authority and International Development, has been studying a charity’s efforts in the region, exploring whether the game really can meet its aims […]
GalleryThe charcoal challenge in DRC’s Virunga
The charcoal trade in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been framed as an issue of transnational organised crime, omitting the importance of the trade for local populations. Current strategies of heavy law enforcement consequently fail to gain public support, and will remain ineffective.
Virunga National Park in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was recently reopened for tourists, after […]
GalleryMoney guards and hospital hostages in the DRC
Conducting research in new socio-economic spaces can bring unexpected challenges. For two researchers in Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo their identities as white foreigners impacted their relation to power and authority, with ignorance of local customs interacting with privileged access to money and networks.
This article is part of the #PublicAuthority blog series with the Centre for Public Authority […]
GalleryA never-ending story? Cyclical mobilisation and demobilisation in the eastern DRC
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, demobilisation programmes aim to reintegrate combatants into everyday life. But there are often blurred boundaries between what is considered military and civilian and, with a less nuanced understanding, potential future security threats could go unchecked.
This article is part of the #PublicAuthority blog series with the Centre for Public Authority and International Development at LSE.
Combatants’ […]
GalleryPolitics, the Interfaith Religious Platform and Public Authority in the Central African Republic
Gino Vlavonou explores how multiple public authorities shape the current armed conflict in CAR.
This article is part of the #PublicAuthority blog series, part of the ESRC-funded Centre for Public Authority and International Development.
Armed conflicts are complex and the Central African Republic (CAR) is a place where the national government and international community have been struggling to bring about peace. Armed […]
GalleryWhat do witch doctors actually do?
As part of trying to understand how Public Authority operates in such impoverished, marginal and conflict-affected places, Robin Oryem has been interviewing local witch doctors.
One thing every Acholi person wants to avoid is being associated with a witch doctor, but I took courage and informed the bodaboda (motorbike taxi) man that I was heading to the witch doctor’s place. He bombarded me […]
GalleryReading List: Most popular blog posts of 2018
As the final few hours of 2018 dwindle away, let’s look back at 2018 and discover the best-read Africa@LSE blog posts of the year.
Transformation euphoria in the Horn of Africa – As political transformation occurs across the Horn of Africa at an unprecedented pace, Abukar Arman provides a comprehensive analysis of the rapidly changing situation.
The unenviable situation of Tigreans […]
GalleryNotes from the Field: Beginning a new research project
Pat Stys and Tom Kirk discuss the challenges of designing a new research project examining water governance in Goma, the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
This article is part of the #PublicAuthority blog series, part of the ESRC-funded Centre for Public Authority and International Development.
In early 2018, Mercy Corps DRC representatives approached LSE CPAID researcher Pat Stys to conduct research on […]
GalleryWhen is Going with The Grain Making the Problem Worse?
In order to realise change, development practitioners sometimes make compromises with groups that do not always share the same ideals. Following a recent workshop on social accountability, Tom Kirk and Annette JE Fisher reflect on the discussions held and ask when, and how, ‘going with the grain’ can make a problem worse.
This article is part of the #PublicAuthority blog […]
GalleryNotes from the Field: Mob justice in Gulu
Julian Hopwood writes about an unsettling event on the field that led him to reflect on mob justice and the complicated moral and political territory it finds itself.
There was a strong smell of petrol in my car one morning back in March. I was worried that it might be a leak, before I realised what it was.
Mob justice in […]
