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The report analyzes the shift in international development cooperation following the Busan High Level Forum, highlighting the rise of South-South cooperation and the challenge emerging powers pose to the OECD-DAC's Paris Declaration. It notes a transition from a narrow 'aid' agenda toward 'development effectiveness' and economic growth, particularly in Africa, where the influence of traditional Western donors is declining in favor of results-oriented investments from countries like China, India, and Brazil. While the Busan Outcomes Declaration seeks a more inclusive Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation, the document argues that a fundamental divide persists between Western aid practices and the mercantilist, tied-aid approaches of emerging economies.

The 18th AU Summit focused on electing the rotating AU Chair and AU Commission leadership, approving the 2012 budget, and inaugurating a new headquarters building funded by China. The document highlights significant managerial failures within the AU Commission, including a 48% vacancy rate for staff posts and low budget utilization in certain departments.

The report employs a Household Energy Economic Analysis (HHEA) model based on discrete choice analysis and stated preference surveys to understand why clean cooking technologies often fail to penetrate Sub-Saharan African markets. By surveying households in Addis Ababa, Dar es Salaam, and Maputo, the study argues that product-specific attributes—such as stove price, usage cost, safety, and smoke levels—are as critical as socio-economic factors in determining consumer choice. The findings reveal that low-income households are significantly more sensitive to upfront stove prices than usage costs, while higher-income groups show a greater willingness to pay for reduced smoke and increased safety. The report concludes that for bio-ethanol stoves to be viable, particularly for the poor, policies must address both the initial purchase price through subsidies or microfinance and the ongoing fuel costs.

Dr. Jakkie Cilliers, Executive Director of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), delivered opening remarks on April 13, 2010, for the launch of the ISS's expanded Nairobi office. The speech details the ISS's evolution from a South African organization founded in 1991 to a pan-African think tank focused on "sustainable human security." Cilliers highlights the institute's regional presence in Pretoria, Cape Town, Addis Ababa, and Nairobi, and its collaborations with various African Union and regional bodies. The remarks also introduce new initiatives, including the African Conflict Prevention System (ACPS) and the proposed ISS Peace Academy in Addis Ababa, which aims to provide training on non-traditional security issues such as climate change.

The briefing examines the 2010 constitutional referendum in Madagascar, arguing that the process is unilateral and designed to consolidate the power of leader Rajoelina. It highlights the lack of consensus between international actors—specifically the divide between SADC/AU and France/EU—and warns that without inclusive dialogue, institutional reform, and security sector overhaul, the country will remain trapped in a cycle of political crises.

The report details a seminar featuring leaders from the Dinka Ngok and Missiriya groups to discuss the conflict over the Abyie boundary. Key points of contention include differing historical border claims (1905 vs 1956), the perceived unfairness of the Permanent Court of Arbitration's ruling, and the complicating influence of oil fields and political agendas of the National Congress Party and the Sudan People Liberation Movement. Despite current tensions and fears of a 'showdown', participants agreed that traditional conflict management mechanisms could be used to resolve the dispute.

The document examines the multifaceted relationship between China and Ethiopia, highlighting China's significant role in infrastructure development and trade while noting the potential negative effects of outdated technology transfers and poor labour standards. It argues that while Ethiopia benefits from China's 'no-strings-attached' economic support, this approach may entrench the authoritarian nature of the Ethiopian government by providing an alternative to Western donors who condition aid on human rights and democratic progress.

The document evaluates the Grand Coalition Government (GCG) in Kenya, established after the 2007 post-election violence. While it notes institutional progress in justice and constitutional reform, it highlights failures in addressing root causes of conflict, such as land disputes and economic marginalization, and notes a sharp decline in economic growth from 7% to 1.7%.

The report details a seminar co-hosted by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) and the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM) on March 3, 2009. Presenters identified institutional, perceptual, and operational hurdles to the Joint Africa-EU Strategic Strategy (JAES), including a lack of African ownership, paternalistic EU attitudes, and the impact of the global financial crisis. Recommendations focus on restoring trust, balancing asymmetric competencies between the EU and AU, and involving civil society and regional economic communities to move beyond a 'Brussels – Addis Ababa axis'.

The report examines gender mainstreaming in Ethiopia's mine action sector, highlighting the role of historical gender equality movements (such as the TPLF) and the necessity of adapting strategies to diverse regional norms. While women are heavily involved in mine risk education (MRE) and victim assistance, they are entirely absent from technical demining roles. The paper emphasizes that pre-existing women's organizations and a decentralized sector structure both shape the effectiveness of gender-sensitive interventions.

The workshop examined how elections in Africa often serve as sources of conflict due to poor management, weak institutional frameworks, and the manipulation of state power by ruling parties. Participants discussed the role of regional bodies like ECOWAS and SADC, the limitations of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, and the specific failures of Zimbabwe's 2008 elections. The event concluded with recommendations for strengthening the African Union's role in election observation and the need for national constitutional reforms aligned with continental frameworks.

The paper examines the factors that turn elections into sources of conflict in Africa and proposes a framework to make them developmental assets. It identifies issues such as the 'predatory long incumbency' of leaders, the dominance of single-party systems, and the lack of public confidence in electoral machinery. The author suggests that improving political management requires a combination of individual integrity, AU oversight, and a shift toward 'meaningful developmental decentralisation' that empowers local communities with technical skills and resources rather than using decentralisation as a tool for party control.

The Handbook for African Civil Society outlines the operational framework of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), a tool for intra-African governance review. It details the five stages of the review process—from self-assessment to official publication—and the continental and national structures that manage it. The guide emphasizes that CSOs must take proactive leadership 'upstream' rather than waiting for government invitations to ensure their interests are represented in National Governance Commissions and National Programmes of Action. It identifies four key review areas: democracy and political governance, economic governance, corporate governance, and socio-economic development. The document also analyzes barriers to CSO engagement, such as fear of governments, lack of resources, and internal disorganization, while offering strategies to influence power centers including the APRM Panel, the Continental Secretariat, and national parliaments.

The document identifies that 76% of the sub-Saharan African population relies on traditional biomass for cooking, leading to deforestation, indoor air pollution, and gender inequality. It argues that while clean fuels like LPG, ethanol, and biogas offer significant health and environmental benefits, their adoption is stifled by high costs, lack of infrastructure, and socio-cultural preferences. The authors recommend national government intervention through targeted subsidies, the creation of clean cooking fuel bureaus, and the development of local sustainable energy resources for rural areas.

The document outlines the strategic cooperation between the European Union (EU) and Africa, focusing on the EU Strategy for Africa and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). It emphasizes the need for increased aid effectiveness, infrastructural development via the EU-Africa Infrastructure Partnership, and the creation of a Joint EU-Africa Strategy. Key priorities include poverty reduction, governance, peace and security, and energy cooperation, while highlighting the importance of African ownership of development strategies.

The document analyzes the NEPAD African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), detailing its five-stage review process, its organizational structure involving the APR Forum and Panel of Eminent Persons, and its complex relationship with the African Union. It highlights the tension between political governance review and economic governance, the role of partner institutions like the UNECA and the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, and the challenges of financing and institutional capacity in ensuring the mechanism's efficacy.

The workshop brought together 35 participants from 21 global and regional web initiatives to map their niches, share challenges, and establish the Climate Knowledge Brokers Group. Key outcomes include a detailed knowledge map of existing platforms and the identification of four joint projects focusing on linked open data, a 'portal-of-portals' for signposting, shared search facilities, and metadata standards.

The workshop, organized by the Ministry of Finance and CDKN, revealed that while Ethiopia has strong general commitments to gender equality, these are not effectively translated into climate change policies. A scoping study found that initiatives across government agencies remain disjointed, with the Climate-Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) strategy and sectoral adaptation plans lacking clear accountability mechanisms for gender issues. The report highlights specific gendered impacts, such as rural women spending 4 to 5 hours daily fetching water and up to 3,796 hours annually collecting fuelwood. Recommendations include establishing an inter-institutional women affairs directorate's committee, implementing gender-responsive budgeting, and developing mandatory gender analysis for funding eligibility through the CRGE Facility.

The Raising Risk Awareness (RRA) project focused on applying extreme event attribution to understand the role of climate change in specific weather events in Ethiopia, India, and Kenya, while using the Surging Seas tool to assess coastal flooding risk in Bangladesh. The project sought to bridge the gap between science, communication, and policy to improve disaster risk management in developing countries.

The 'Just Transition Compass' provides a strategic framework to move just transition concepts from high-level dialogue to scalable implementation. It identifies four core elements of a just transition: addressing existing injustices, aligning structural changes with Paris Agreement goals, ensuring meaningful stakeholder participation, and fair distribution of costs and benefits. The document argues that national transitions cannot succeed without international cooperation and proposes the creation of a permanent Just Transition coordination body within the UNFCCC to reduce fragmentation, align financial flows, and share best practices across sectors beyond energy, such as agriculture and transport.