Impact of Urbanization in Somalia

 The Rift Valley Institute published in 2022 a study titled "Commodified Cities: Urbanization and Public Goods in Somalia" by Tobias Hagmann et al.  

Somali cities are fragile but continue to be attractive places to live, work, trade, get an education, and socialize for many Somalis.  Urbanization is transforming Somali society in multiple and profound ways.  

The Sudan-Ethiopia Border Dispute

 The International Crisis Group (ICG) published on 24 June 2021 an analysis titled "Containing the Volatile Sudan-Ethiopia Border Dispute."

Ethiopia and Sudan are locked in a dangerous military standoff over a piece of fertile borderland farmed by Ethiopian farmers but claimed by Sudan.  External partners should urge the two countries to find a land-use compromise similar to an earlier soft border arrangement without linking the issue to other contentious issues.  

China in Mozambique's Forests

The Institute for Environment and Development published in 2018 a major study titled "China in Mozambique's Forests: A Review of Issues and Progress for Livelihoods and Sustainability" edited by Duncan Macqueen.

China is the destination for about 93 percent of all Mozambique's timber exports. Concerns have been raised over the impact of these patterns of investment and trade for Mozambique's forests and the development of rural populations. This study compiles three years of work of the China-Africa Governance Project to develop evidence on constraints and opportunities for forest resources in productive and resilient land use and trade, to develop capacity and dialogue among relevant stakeholders in China and Mozambique, and to deliver policy and practice improvement opportunities.

China-Africa Forest Trade and Investment

The International Institute for Environment and Development published in October 2016 a study titled "China-Africa Forest Trade and Investment: An Overview with Analysis for Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique and Uganda" by Andreas Wilkes.

The study provides an overview of trends, evidence and issues related to the impacts on forests of Chinese investments in Cameroon, DRC, Mozambique and Uganda. It explains Chinese overseas investment policies and presents data on trends in forest-related trade and investment in these four countries. It highlights issues of concern and opportunities for engaging with Chinese and African stakeholders to support improved forest governance.

Land Use, Ownership and Allocation in Sudan

The Sudan Democracy First Group published in September 2016 a report titled "Land Use, Ownership and Allocation in Sudan: The Challenge of Corruption and Lack of Transparency" by Mohyeldeen E. Taha.

The study focuses on land tenure issues in Sudan, large scale foreign land investments, and the concern that there is a lack of transparency in land policy that leads to corruption.

Land Conflicts in Southern and Central Somalia

The Rift Valley Institute published in 2015 a study titled "Hosts and Guests: A Historical Interpretation of Land Conflicts in Southern and Central Somalia" by Lee Cassanelli, University of Pennsylvania.

Cassanelli explains that many of the land conflicts are rooted in long histories of competition over land and water between neighboring communities, or in struggles between local landholders and a predatory state.  International actors attempting to address land conflicts tend to invoke universally acknowledged rights of restitution of property seized unlawfully from individuals and groups.  Circumstances in Somalia, however, make it extremely difficult to apply international norms in the allocation of rights and protection to those who have been forcibly deprived of their homes and properties.

He concludes that by drawing on indigenous and historically-grounded patterns of resource sharing by "hosts" and "guests", it may be possible gradually to reinvigorate the notion--rooted in local and Islamic tradition--that land and resources are gifts from God to all Somalis, and in doing so diminish a reliance on clan exclusivity as the primary principle for defining rights to territory.