Conflicts

Argentina lawmakers have passed a bill to legalize abortion. A major and unprecedented step for the fourth country to make abortion legal in Latin America. As issues around climate, democracy and human rights are being fought over, solutions are also implemented.

International humanitarian aid relies on voluntary contributions from a small number of Western countries—a model that puts the capacity for action by NGOs into jeopardy. In his latest book, 0.03%! (published in French by Éditions Parole), Pierre Micheletti, President of Action Contre la Faim...

What can be done to help Lebanon recover from the devastating explosion on August 4, amid a serious political crisis and the collapse of its banking system?

Could the forced resignation of President Keïta offer a fresh start for Mali? Thomas Hofnung, editor-in-chief of iD4D, sees above all a long-term danger of increasing people’s mistrust of politicians.

In areas disputed by various armed groups, aid workers must constantly make practical trade-offs. This article presents two examples from the troubled conflict zone of the Sahel.

In Cameroon, 850,000 students have been deprived of school since 2016 due to the conflict that is shaking up the country and dividing the population.

Jean-Nicolas Marti is now serving his second field position in Mali for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Here he talks about the ICRC’s operational doctrine in areas of armed conflict and mentions its development actions, a turning point for this institution.

The dynamics of livestock markets in West Africa are still poorly understood and rarely studied. Yet, pastoralism is crucial for resilience and economic stability in the Sahel region, as climate specialist Lucie Royer and economist Stéphanie Brunelin explain here.

As a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, the number of people living in food insecurity in East Africa could increase from 14 million to 23 million. In addition to emergency measures, this crisis has highlighted the need to improve the resilience of food systems, especially in the worst-affected...

The new contemporary conflicts facing us are more difficult to resolve. The forms of action taken by international actors coming to the aid of the most fragile societies must be reviewed if we are to boost their impact.

Why try to reinvent the wheel in conflict zones, taking the viewpoint that these areas are frozen in time, when these communities can innovate and find solutions for themselves? Researcher Bakary Sambé (Timbuktu Institute) discusses this issue.

If “we are at war” against COVID-19, then what kind of war is it? In Bertrand Badie’s view, this war is unlike any we have seen before. Its outcome depends on the emergence of solidarity and global governance.

A press article cannot equal food, drinking water or medical assistance when it comes to saving lives. But drawing attention to a crisis is also a way of providing humanitarian aid according to Philippe Lévêque from NGO Care France.

According to Xavier Lhote, wars between States have given way to violence of social origin. Short-term humanitarian, political and military responses are no longer sufficient in resolving these crises: development stakeholders have an important long-term role to play.  

In their desire to protect themselves from the threat of terrorism, governments have adopted drastic measures that could hinder the work of humanitarian organizations. Pierre Micheletti, President of Action Contre la Faim, calls for the urgent revision of these rules

With its lasting peace and stable growth, Rwanda is the prodigal child of sub-Saharan African development. Yet 25 years ago, the country went through one of the worst genocides in world history. Is the “Rwandan miracle” a mirage?

Management and sharing of waters are said to provoke conflicts in the world between States sharing the vital resource. A look on the concept of water conflicts with Stephen McCaffrey.

Laurent Bossard, Director of the OECD’s Sahel and West Africa Club Secretariat, takes a look at the paradox of Sahelian women: despite the key socio-economic role they play in communities, they remain marginalised and are sometimes deprived of their fundamental rights.