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The document examines how the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) evaluates judicial independence, arguing that the process relies too heavily on formal constitutional protections rather than the actual capacity of courts to issue autonomous judgements. Through analysis of reports from Uganda, Lesotho, and Tanzania, the author identifies a gap between the 'rhetoric' of separation of powers and the 'reality' of executive interference, underfunding, and selective compliance. The paper recommends shifting the APRM's focus toward 'judicial empowerment' and integrating the broader 'legal complex'—including law societies and legal scholars—into the assessment process to better understand the systemic pressures on the rule of law.

The document outlines a pilot project by Natural Justice and partners to implement biocultural community protocols (BCPs) in four countries to safeguard community rights against extractive industries. It details specific regional efforts—addressing infrastructure and oil/gas/coal in Kenya, diamond mining in Zimbabwe, lithium mining in Argentina, and various mining forms in India—while identifying BCPs as tools for internal consensus and external rights assertion. The report highlights successes in community mobilization and challenges such as political will, safety threats, and the difficulty of defining 'community' in non-homogenous groups.

The paper critiques the 'liberal peace paradigm' in Africa, suggesting that external peacebuilding often reinforces autocratic governance by focusing on state-building and technical capacity rather than addressing systemic inequality and patronage networks. It argues that current conflicts are driven by the collective denial of individual rights to maintain power configurations, and that peacebuilding must shift toward a rights-based approach to be effective.

The document examines South Africa's role as a SADC facilitator in Zimbabwe, noting that the decision to end regional monitoring after the 2013 elections was driven by a desire to avoid military instability and migration. It argues that this 'security first' approach ignored Zimbabwe's deepening economic crisis and highlighted a lack of coordination between the South African government and its private sector in executing economic diplomacy.

The Limpopo River Basin supports 14 million people, with a significant portion of the population in South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe relying on rain-fed agriculture. Due to highly variable rainfall, resource-poor small-scale farmers are particularly vulnerable to weather-related shocks as they lack the means to invest in water-saving technology and storage. To address these challenges, the document recommends strengthening the Limpopo River Basin Commission's capacity, establishing secure land tenure and water rights for rural populations, prioritising water pricing for small-holders, and planning for water resources based on future precipitation scenarios.

The document highlights the vulnerability of sub-Saharan African port infrastructure to climate hazards such as sea level rise, storm surges, and extreme rainfall. It notes that while the industry is aware of climate change, this awareness is rarely translated into practical planning. The brief recommends establishing a close dialogue between climate scientists and port practitioners, reviewing port master plans, and providing designers with simple, quantified projections of climate variables to improve long-term resilience.

The document provides a practitioner-focused guide to securing community land rights in Africa, detailing case studies on resolving land conflicts, strengthening local governance, and resisting forced resettlement. It emphasizes the importance of community self-definition, the use of Biocultural Community Protocols, and the necessity of multi-pronged advocacy strategies involving legal education, media engagement, and the building of alliances between grassroots movements and sympathetic government actors.

The report examines return migration as a complex spectrum of agency and coercion, challenging the 'myth of return' and the binary of forced versus voluntary migration. It identifies ten key findings, highlighting that return intentions are shaped by competing attachments to multiple societies and that reintegration can be as challenging as initial integration due to social expectations, corruption, and security risks. The research emphasizes the critical role of short-term return visits in informing decisions and maintaining transnational ties, while noting that secure legal status in a destination country often paradoxically facilitates the possibility of return by providing a safety net.

The report provides an 'Afro-realistic' analysis of accountability in Africa, contrasting the potential of continental initiatives like the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) and Agenda 2063 with the practical challenges of domestic implementation. It investigates the roles of the African Union (AU), national parliaments, ombudsman offices, and civil society in curbing executive power and ensuring sustainable peace. The text highlights a tension between economic development and democratic governance, noting that while some states achieve growth, it often occurs at the expense of human rights.

The report assesses 50 environmental impact assessment frameworks, finding that few focus exclusively on livestock. It identifies nine key impact dimensions—including GHG emissions, water use, and biodiversity—and notes a significant lack of ex-ante analysis and explicit rationale for indicator selection. The review highlights that while many frameworks target policymakers, they often rely on short-term data and lack clear methodologies for up-scaling results across different spatial and temporal scales.

The report examines the legal landscape in Zimbabwe concerning the rights of local communities and indigenous peoples. It highlights a significant gap between progressive constitutional provisions and the actual implementation of laws, particularly in the mining and forestry sectors. While community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) programs like CAMPFIRE show some success in wildlife conservation, the report finds that local communities often face arbitrary evictions, lack of secure land tenure, and marginalization from decision-making processes in extractive industries. It recommends comprehensive legal reforms to align sectoral laws with the 2013 Constitution, establish a Land Commission, and formalize the recognition of Indigenous Community Conserved Areas (ICCAs).

The study examines the governance of urban land markets in Zimbabwe, identifying institutional challenges and the role of various actors in land delivery. It concludes that while private financing and civil society organisations offer opportunities for housing development, the planning framework lacks a clear definition of the poor, and there is a critical need for an affordable property rights registration system and a forum for institutional actors to collaborate.

The document analyzes the roles of Zimbabwe as SADC chair and South Africa as chair of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation (OPDSC) for 20142015. It argues that while these roles provide opportunities for leadership, the impact is constrained by SADC's consensus-based decision-making and institutional weaknesses. Key challenges include high dependency on donor funding, political instability in Lesotho, and the influence of domestic political struggles in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

The document analyzes the evolution of China–Zimbabwe relations from the 1960s liberation struggle to 2014. It argues that the relationship is driven by a unique 'two-way momentum' resulting from Zimbabwe's 'Look East' policy and China's FOCAC-led engagement, particularly as Zimbabwe faced Western sanctions. The author highlights a balanced development across political, economic, and military pillars, though notes that the relationship often serves as a political tool for the ZANU-PF government. Key economic findings include a surge in Chinese FDI and trade, with Zimbabwe becoming a top recipient of Chinese investment in 2013. The paper concludes that while the relationship is currently based on crisis-response pragmatism, it has the potential to pioneer a more comprehensive strategic partnership for China–Africa relations if both nations develop formal national strategies.

The research paper examines the political strategy of RENAMO and its leader Afonso Dhlakama in Mozambique following the 2014 elections. It argues that RENAMO has shifted from electoral politics toward a strategy of 'brinkmanship' and guerrilla warfare to secure political concessions and a Government of National Unity (GNU), drawing parallels to post-election settlements in Kenya and Zimbabwe. While this approach restored RENAMO's political fortunes and secured reforms to election management bodies, the author notes that international observers viewed the 2014 elections as generally free and fair, potentially undermining RENAMO's bid for international mediation and a forced power-sharing agreement.

The policy brief argues that peace agreements in the DRC, specifically the Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement and the Addis Ababa Framework Agreement (AAFA), reflect shifts in economic power between the eastern Kivus and the southern Katanga province. While early conflicts and the ICGLR were driven by the exploitation of coltan and other minerals in the east by Rwanda and Uganda, the subsequent rise of copper and cobalt investments in Katanga shifted geopolitical influence toward SADC states.

The document analyzes the complex relationship between China and Zimbabwe between 2003 and 2013. It argues that the partnership is rooted in China's support for ZANU during the liberation war and has evolved into a strategic alliance where Zimbabwe uses Chinese economic and diplomatic backing to weather Western sanctions. The paper details extensive Chinese investments in mining (particularly diamonds), agriculture, telecommunications, and infrastructure, while noting significant domestic opposition in Zimbabwe due to allegations of human rights abuses, environmental neglect, and the stifling of local businesses. It also explores China's role in shielding Zimbabwe from UN Security Council sanctions and its tactical engagement with the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

The document argues that while foreign policy is primarily an executive function, South Africa's constitutional mandate for the rule of law makes it susceptible to judicial review. It details how civil society organizations, such as the Southern Africa Litigation Centre (SALC), have used actual and threatened litigation to challenge government decisions regarding torture in Zimbabwe, the appointment of a Sri Lankan diplomat, and the visit of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. The author notes that while courts are effective when international criminal law obligations are domesticated, they are less equipped to challenge broader political decisions. The paper also highlights a similar trend in Kenya, where courts ordered an arrest warrant for al-Bashir.

The case study examines an irrigation project in Ruti, Zimbabwe, implemented by Oxfam and the government. It finds that while local adaptation efforts can significantly increase production and resilience for smallholder farmers, these gains are precarious without a broader supportive political and economic framework, especially as climate change increases the frequency and intensity of droughts and rainfall.

The paper examines the impact of Chinese resources-for-infrastructure (R4I) swaps on the 'resource curse' in Africa, specifically analyzing mechanisms like price volatility, Dutch disease, rent-seeking, and political conflict. Through case studies of countries such as Angola, the DRC, and Ghana, the author finds that R4I swaps are neither inherently harmful nor a panacea; their developmental impact depends on the capacity of host government institutions to manage risks and opportunities.