Rethinking Aid in Sudan and South Sudan

 The Rift Valley Institute published in 2026 a paper titled "Rethinking Aid in Sudan and South Sudan."

More than 30 grassroots and international non-governmental organizations convened in Kampala, Uganda, in November 2025 to discuss the future of development and humanitarian aid to Sudan and South Sudan in view of the dramatic contraction of assistance, especially as a result of the dismantlement of USAID.  They proposed numerous recommendations to deal with the crisis.  

Sudan Is World's Largest Humanitarian Crisis

 PBS News published on 5 February 2026 an article titled "Head of Humanitarian Group Urge's Nations to Step Up Sudan Aid to Prevent 'Biblical Famine'" in interview by Nick Schifrin with Jan Egeland, secretary-general, Norwegian Refugee Council.  

Due to the ongoing civil war in Sudan, the country has become the largest humanitarian crisis in the world today.  Too few organizations are on the ground, and they are overstretched and underfunded.  The donor community, including the United States, is not providing enough food to prevent a biblical famine.  Frontline Sudanese volunteers are largely keeping people alive.  

American Food Aid after the Destruction of USAID

 The George Washington University Global Food Institute published in October 2025 a report titled "Surveying the Food Aid Ecosystem: Six Months Post-USAID."

The Trump administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development soon after Donald Trump assumed the presidency.  This triggered the most significant humanitarian funding shift in decades.  Billions of dollars in cuts, abrupt stop-work orders, and inconsistent exemptions affected programs across more than 70 countries.  To learn the results of this development, a team from GWU interviewed more than 20 stakeholders across the food aid and assistance ecosystem.

They concluded that local non-governmental organizations, abandoned mid-project without resources, may be reluctant to partner again under U.S. government funding.  Formal forums like the Food Aid Consultative Group ceased functioning, leaving organizations to rely on ad hoc back channels and personal networks.  Agricultural development support has been broadly curtailed, leaving in place short-term in-kind food aid and some humanitarian assistance.  Organizations that once worked through formal networks convened by USAID, the United Nations, and others are increasingly sharing information and advocacy strategies through informal channels.

The pathways of funding, information, and cooperation that defined the aid sector for decades are giving way to a thinner, more fragmented system.  The hope going forward is to shape a more resilient, equitable, and evidence-driven aid system. 

China's Minerals for Infrastructure Deal in DRC Under Fire Again

 Africa News published on 25 August 2025 an article titled "DR Congo: Civil Society Groups Call for Reassessment of China Mining Deal."

Civil society groups and NGOs in the Democratic Republic of Congo are calling for another reassessment of the controversial $7.5 billion "minerals for infrastructure" deal with China.  

Postmortem on Dismantling of USAID

 The Hill Published on 20 July 2025 an article titled "A Postmortem on the Dismantling of USAID" by Glenn C. Altschuler, Cornell University.  

The Trump administration cancelled 83 percent of USAID's programs and laid off 94 percent of its 4,500 employees, transferring the few remaining staff to the State Department.  The author concluded that the dismantling of USAID has already had a negative impact on the lives of tens of millions of vulnerable people in 130 countries and undermined US national interest.

Japan as Model for China's Use of NGOs in Foreign Aid

The Panda Paw Dragon Claw blog posted on 17 August 2021 an analysis titled "How Does Japan Involve NGOs in Foreign Aid? Implications for China" by Kenichi Doi, Peking University. 

The author describes the use of non-governmental organizations in aid programs administered by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and suggests they could serve as a model for the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA).

Ethiopia, Refugees, and Economic Inclusion

 Refugees International published in June 2021 a report titled "From Displacement to Development: How Ethiopia Can Create Shared Growth by Facilitating Economic Inclusion for Refugees" by Jimmy Graham and Sarah Miller.  

Ethiopia is home to about 800,000 refugees, mostly from South Sudan, Somalia, and Eritrea.  The conflict in Tigray Region has complicated the refugee situation.  The report argues that the Ethiopian government must seek long-term solutions to hosting refugees, moving away from its long-standing system that restricts most refugees to camps with limited economic activity and toward a system that allows for greater refugee economic inclusion.

Chinese NGOs in Africa Learning the Ropes

The ChinAfrica Project posted on 18 May 2020 a commentary titled "Chinese NGOs in Africa Are New and Making Some Mistakes but They're Learning Fast" by Huang Hongxiang, who operates the Chinese NGO China House in Kenya. 

China does not have a strong history of NGOs and even less experience with operations outside China.  This account represents the views of the director of one of the few Chinese NGOs active in Africa today.  It has been a learning experience. 

Russia-Africa Media and NGO Engagement Continues to Lag

The Southern Times published on 24 March 2020 an article titled "Russia-Africa NGOs and Media Cooperation: Still Several Steps Away from Reality" by Kester Kenn Klomegah.

In spite of efforts to revive relations with Africa following the Russia-Africa summit last October, media cooperation has been given a low priority and there is still not a single African non-governmental organization operating in Russia.

Humanitarian Access in South Sudan

The Center for Strategic and International Studies published in November 2018 a study titled "Accessing South Sudan: Humanitarian Aid in a Time of Crisis" by Erol Yayboke.

The author looks at the challenges faced by humanitarian aid organizations as they try to access the 7 million South Sudanese who are in need of humanitarian assistance.

Turkey-Africa Economic Relations

The Journal of Sustainable Development Law and Policy, published by Nigeria's Afe Babalola University, contains a 2017 analysis titled "Economic Relations between Turkey and Africa: Challenges and Prospects" by Elem Eyrice Tepecikliogu, Yasar University in Turkey.

The study explores the evolution of Turkish-African relations and concentrates on Turkey's economic engagement in Africa. It analyzes recent Turkish initiatives in Africa's energy sector. It argues that although the low level of attention previously paid to Africa has changed, the pace of development of relations with Africa is still slow and suggests more steps should be taken to further improve relations with the continent.

China-Africa Forestry Cooperation

The International Institute for Environment and Development, which works in China, Cameroon, DRC, Mozambique, and Uganda, posted on 20 November 2017 the presentations from its October 2017 fourth international meeting in Mozambique of the China-Africa Forest Governance Learning Platform.

The posting includes the following slide presentations:

--Changes in China's Policy and Actions on China-Africa Forest Products Trade.
--Opportunities and Challenges for Chinese Timber Businesses in the Congo Basin.
--Insights of Chinese Forestry Investment in Zambia - Opportunities and Challenges.
--Zanzibar Declaration on Illegal Trade in Timber and Other Forest Products: Progress Made.
--Mozambique-China Cooperation on Forest and Timber Issues: Progress Made.
--NGOs Work in Cameroon with Companies Exporting Timber to China: Lessons Learned.
--Private Sector View of the Changes in Mozambique.
--Government View of Forest Sector Changes in Mozambique.
--Sustainable Processing of Wood in Uganda and the Chinese Market: Opportunities and Challenges.
--Forest Investment Program Support for the Forest Sector in Mozambique.
--China's Training Aid for African Forestry: Progress, Problems and Prospects.

Chinese Environment Lawyer Urges Legal Requirements, Not Guidelines for Foreign Investment

ChinaDialogue published on 1 December 2017 an interview titled "China Needs Urgent Oversight of Investments" with Zhang Jingling, an environmental lawyer and visiting scholar at the Environmental Law Institute in Washington.

The author did research in Africa, Asia, and Latin America on the role of Chinese foreign investment. Noting that Chinese companies are not transparent, she concluded that China needs to establish legal requirements rather than voluntary guidelines for Chinese foreign investments. This recommendation is important for Africa, which has somewhere between $34 billion and $83 billion of Chinese FDI.

A Somali-led Approach to Aid Delivery in Somalia

The Rift Valley Institute published in September 2017 a report titled "Improving Aid Delivery through Localization in Somalia" by Amina Abdulkadir.

The author summarizes recommendations from a recent workshop for improving the delivery of humanitarian aid in Somalia. International organizations now acknowledge that it is time for a Somali-led approach.

Surveillance and State Control in Ethiopia

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace published on 18 May 2017 a study titled "Surveillance and State Control in Ethiopia" by Saskia Brechenmacher.

The author argues that the closing of civic space in Ethiopia has the following key features:

--Harsh restrictions on foreign funding for civil society organizations working on a wide range of politically related issues.
--Violent repression of civic mobilization in the name of counterterrorism and anti-extremism.
--Efforts to bring all independent civil society groups--including development and humanitarian actors--in line with the government's national development policy.

Chinese NGOs in Africa

The May 2016 issue of Development Policy Review published a study titled "'Going Out' or Staying In? The Expansion of Chinese NGOs in Africa" by Jennifer Hsu, University of Alberta, Timothy Hildebrandt, London School of Economics and Political Science, and Reza Hasmath, Oxford.

The study examines the overseas behavior of Chinese NGOs in Ethiopia and Malawi and concludes they are yet to make a substantial impact in either nation. The study suggests that the Chinese model of international development will continue to be one where temporary one-off projects are favored. Insofar as social organizations play a role, they will be government organized NGOs rather than grassroots NGOs.

South Sudan and Role of Civil Society

The Rift Valley Institute published in 2016 a report titled "Instruments in Both Peace and War: South Sudanese Discuss Civil Society Actors and Their Role."

A panel of academics, activists, the church, chiefs, and press discussed the nature of civil society in South Sudan and its past and future place in the public sphere in a series of public lectures at the Catholic University of South Sudan.

China's NGOs and Africa

The Diplomat published on 23 March 2016 a commentary titled "China's NGOs Go Global" by Reza Hasmath, University of Alberta.  The number of Chinese NGOs, most of which are government-organized NGOs or GONGOs, in Africa and Southeast Asia is more than 100, although as few as 10 to 15 have permanent operations and local offices.  In Africa, they have been active in the health sector in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Sudan, Malawi, and Zimbabwe.  Unlike Western NGOs, there is some concern that Chinese GONGOs will strengthen authoritarian tendencies

Side Events at the 2015 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation

The China-Africa Reporting Project published on 9 February 2016 a compilation titled "A Review of FOCAC Side Events 2015" by Bob Wekesa.  It constitutes a lengthy list of governmental and non-governmental events that accompanied the December 2015 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Kenyan Attack on Civil Society Organizations

The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) published on 5 January 2016 a commentary titled "Think Again: Civil Society in Kenya is Down, but Not Out" by Simon Allison, ISS consultant.  The author describes a three-pronged plan to crush civil society in Kenya.