Latest News
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UN Peacekeeping in the DR. Congo twenty years later, what else?
During his visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) last week, the United Nations’ Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that, “he was looking to the Security Council for the renewal of MONUSCO [UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo] mandate and the strategic review, to enable this UN Mission to serve the Congolese…
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President Robert Mugabe remembered as an advocate for UN Security Council Reform
The former President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe died this September 6th, 2019 in Singapore at the age of 95. He will be remembered for a lot of things, good and bad. We would like to remember him for his persistent call to reform the United Nations Security Council. During the 67th session of the United…
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Welcome to our Fall Intern, Ebony Tyson
Ebony Tyson is a rising senior majoring in Criminal Justice with a minor in Psychology at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, in which she recently interned for a volunteer management position for Bridging the Gaps Inc. that find solutions for the school-to-prison pipeline issue in minority communities. Last spring, Ebony studied abroad in…
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Sr. Eucharia Madueke of AFJN publishes report on damages of land grabbing in Brewaniase Ghana
On August 23rd, 2019, Sr. Eucharia Madueke published “Africa Faith and Justice Network and the Damages of Land Grabbing: The Case of the Brewaniase Community, Ghana” in The Journal of Social Encounters: Vol. 3: Iss. 1, 58-74.
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Diplomatic Ties Between Kenya and Somaliland
Kenya and Somaliland, an autonomous region of Somalia bordered by Ethiopia and Djibouti, are on the verge of diplomatic relations. The Foreign Affairs Ministry of Kenya has dispatched the envoy Philip Mundia Githiora to establish a mission in the capital of Somaliland – Hargeisa. This was preceded by talks between Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Monica…
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Lamu citizens are successful in pausing Kenya’s plans of the Lamu Coal Plant
On June 26, 2019, “the National Environment Tribunal (NET) cancelled the license issued by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) to Amu Power for the construction of the Lamu Coal Power Plant. NET ordered Amu Power to undertake a new Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) for the project.” With this new order, it means…
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African migrants entering the US through Mexico: a story of desperation
The crisis at the US border with Mexico reveals that migrants are not only coming from Latin America. The number of Africans registered by Mexican authorities tripled over the first four months of 2019. On June 16, 2019, Reporting for the Associated Press, Andrew Selsky and Patrick Whittle wrote that “in one recent week, agents in…
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The Abuse behind Banana production in Cameroon
Banana is one of the fruits available every season and widely consumed in many homes in Europe, the United States and Asia. How I wish these bananas could tell the consumers the story of where they come from? A young Cameroonian named Franck Bieleu made a documentary called “The Big Banana” that profiles the numerous…
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Revolution and Counterrevolution in Sudan
In December 2018, thousands of people took to the streets in protests responding to cuts in subsidies for bread. The protests started in a small rural town and spread to major cities. Familiar with local protests caused by poverty and desperation, the Sudanese people could not imagine the revolution was about to occur. The rural…
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Somalia and Kenya Maritime Boundary Dispute now at the International Court of Justice
Kenya and Somalia are currently fighting at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for a specified area of 100,000 square kilometers in the Indian Ocean in which natural resources have been found. Both have engaged economically in this space and have claimed it, which has created tension. As a reminder, Kenya has been involved militarily…
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Solidarity and Prayers for the Church in Eritrea
On June 12, 2019 the Eritrean authorities ordered the seizure of all Catholic Church-managed health centers. As of July 9 2019, the Catholic News Agency reported that as many as 29 Catholic hospitals, health centers and clinics have been confiscated by the government. The Vatican News reports Daniela Kravetz, the UN Special Rapporteur saying that…
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Ebola crisis in D. R. Congo, US Lawmakers want an action plan to help
On June 4, 2019, Acting Assistant Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, Admiral Tim Ziemer appeared before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations to discuss with lawmakers on way to respond to the worrisome and growing spread of Ebola in North and Ituri Provinces in the Democratic…
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In Solidarity with Refugees on World Refugee Day
A day before World Refugee Day, which is celebrated on June 20th, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has announced that there are about 71,000,000 displaced people around the world. This astonishing number continues to increase and essentially, is becoming an international epidemic. The enormous number of refugees has resulted in overpopulation in camps, some…
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Kenyans Fearful of Ebola
The country of Kenya so far has remained free of the Ebola virus that has plagued the Democratic Republic of Congo and recently three cares were confirmed in Uganda. The fear of Ebola crossing boarders is growing every day. According to Sicily Kariuki, the Health Cabinet Secretary of Kenya, a woman of thirty-six years was…
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Why locals attack Ebola health centers in the DR Congo
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is facing a rapidly evolving Ebola outbreak in the eastern part of the country. Recently, the disease has spread quickly, and, as of now, over 2000 people have been infected. The outbreak has been difficult to contain in part because it is located in an active armed conflict area…
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Welcome to Our Summer Intern – Philip Brooks
My name is Philip Brooks. I am a junior at University of Maryland Baltimore County. I study international relations with a minor in political science. I am in the Sondheim Public Affairs Scholars Program at UMBC. I grew up in Annapolis, Maryland. I am skilled in French. My interests include global security, global governance, and…
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Welcome 2019 Summer Intern Jeannette Kayitesi
I am Jeannette Kayitesi. I’m currently a senior at the University At Albany where I am double majoring in Political Science and Globalization Studies. This past spring I was Interning at the New York State Assembly where I got the chance to experience the power of legislators’ influence on laws with impact at the state…
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Welcome to our Summer Intern, Magdalena Dutkowska
Magdalena has just completed her freshman year at Fairfield University, where she is majoring in International Studies and Spanish and minoring in Humanitarian Action. She was born in Poland, but immigrated to the U.S. with her parents when she was three years old. Her passion for helping others began in 2011 when she volunteered for…
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Time to end the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the DR Congo
Every year the United Nations Security Council renews the mandate of its peacekeeping mission in the DRC. In 1999, exactly 20 years ago, the UN Security Council established the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) with the mandate to monitor compliance of the Lusaka peace agreement. In July 2010…
