In following the lives of displaced female youth in South Sudan and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the research team was struck by how central mental health—in particular poor mental health and psychosocial functioning (MHPSS)—was to the lives of the study participants. This briefing paper outlines the general situation of displaced female youth—unmarried, married, divorced, widowed—from a MHPSS lens. The study shows how female youth in displacement are negatively impacted by traumatic experiences coming from…
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CSRF Research Repository
The CSRF Research Repository aims to support greater contextual knowledge for policy makers, programme managers, and implementers by providing a searchable repository of research, analysis, and resources, and providing periodic updates on new research and analysis.
Two years after the formation of a transitional unity government that includes South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, his long-time rival Riek Machar, and other opposition leaders, the context in South Sudan is dire. Progress in the implementation of the 2018 Revitalized Peace Agreement─which sought to end a brutal five-year civil war that has resulted in hundreds of thousands of civilian deaths─remains limited. South Sudanese civilians face continued human rights abuses by state and non-state actors,…
Resilience is a dominant humanitarian-development theme. Nonetheless, some humanitarian-development programmes have demonstrably negative impacts which encourage vulnerable people to actively resist these programmes. Based on 12 months ethnographic fieldwork in a Ugandan refugee settlement during 2017–18, this paper argues refugee residents articulated their refusal of humanitarian failure and corruption through active, largely non-political, resistance. I term the diverse strategies used ‘resistant resilience’, arguing that the agency central to these practices require that assumptions about resilience are…
Every day, civilians suffer in violent conflicts. Attacks by armed forces, militias and rebel groups have left and continue to leave thousands dead or injured, and have resulted in the forced displacement of millions of people. To mitigate or end such violations, different actors – including NGOs, the UN, military forces, religious groups, and community leaders – often attempt to influence conflict parties to cease attacks on civilians and instead enhance their protection. Focusing on…
This report examines how missions are implementing their mandates to protect civilians from SGBV, including CRSV, and assesses good practices, gaps, and opportunities for improvement. The report draws on lessons learned from the UN missions in South Sudan (UNMISS) and the DRC (MONUSCO). It considers how the complexities of preventing and responding to SGBV necessitate a whole-of-mission approach to the protection of civilians (POC) that encompasses not only physical protection from violence but also activities…
Around the world, forced displacement is on the rise. Growing numbers are affected by disasters and, instead of safe, controlled evacuation and where necessary re-settlement, the average length of displacement is 20 years. Further, one in four displaced persons end up in urban informal settlements, often on the edge of cities. It is also critical that factors of the reality are understood to ensure durable solutions are achieved for displaced communities around the world. Research…
The 2022 Regional Refugee Response Plan (RRRP) for the South Sudan situation outlines the multi-agency response strategy and financial requirements of 102 partners, including humanitarian and development actors as well as civil society, supporting host governments to meet the critical needs of over 2.33 million South Sudanese refugees living across the five main asylum countries. In addition, the plan aims at assisting over 1.3 million impacted members of host communities. The interagency response plan, developed…
This study was undertaken in August-October 2021 on behalf of PAX. It was conceived in the context of human security considerations in the anticipated reclassification of the Protection of Civilians (PoC) site in Malakal. The aim was to understand the perspectives of the various communities of Malakal as well as other key stakeholders on how peace and normalization can be restored so that displaced persons can return home. The study was based on a significant…
As Security Council members prepare to renew the UNMISS mandate in March 2022, they should reinforce the mission with increased resources and stepped-up diplomatic engagement. The year ahead will come with risks of further political violence, which UNMISS should strive to prevent, especially as the 2023 elections approach. The UNMISS mandate must remain focused on the implementation of South Sudan’s peace agreement. But the mandate must also continue to prioritize the protection of civilians and…
This paper provides an overview of land governance as it relates to problems of conflict and displacement in South Sudan. The goal is to help aid actors better understand the context in which they are operating and how they might limit the potential for unintended consequences from their interventions and maximise the contribution that they make to social cohesion and conflict transformation. The study focused on three subnational locations – Bor, Wau and Yambio –…
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