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This country case study on Albania was produced, alongside three others covering Bosnia-Hercegovina, Kosovo and Macedonia, in the framework of a participatory research project on “Opportunities for Preventing Violent Extremism in the Western Balkans”. Together with four local research partners, we explore why some communities are particularly affected by individuals inspired by and/or joining the Islamic State (IS) or other similar violent extremist groups, while other communities may show greater resilience to the same phenomenon. Based on the research findings, the project partners will conduct policy outreach and local dialogue initiatives, in cooperation with local stakeholders and affected communities, in order to explore and develop strategies to prevent violent radicalisation in the Western Balkans.

• Year2018
• Author(s)Redion Qirjazi, Romario Shehu

This country case study on Kosovo was produced, alongside three others covering Albania, Bosnia-Hercegovina and Macedonia, in the framework of a participatory research project on “Opportunities for Preventing Violent Extremism in the Western Balkans”. Together with four local research partners, we explore why some communities are particularly affected by individuals inspired by and/or joining the Islamic State (IS) or other similar violent extremist groups, while other communities may show greater resilience to the same phenomenon. Based on the research findings, the project partners will conduct policy outreach and local dialogue initiatives, in cooperation with local stakeholders and affected communities, in order to explore and develop strategies to prevent violent radicalisation in the Western Balkans.

• Year2018
• Author(s)Rudine Jakupi, Garentina Kraja

• Year2018
• Author(s)Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)

What are the main drivers of political transition and regime change? And to what extent do these apparently seismic political changes result in real change? These questions are the focus of this comparative study written by a mix of scholars and practitioners.

This state-of-the-art volume identifies patterns in political transitions, but is largely unconvinced that these transitions bring about real change to the underlying structures of society. Patriarchy, land tenure, and economic systems often remain immune to change, despite the headlines.

• Year2018

The public and the academic debates about the pros and cons of militias are beset with controversy and tend to ask in general terms whether militias do more good than harm or vice versa. The academic research on militias made significant progress in recent years. However, the conditions under which militias perform better or worse from the perspective of the civilian population are still not well understood.

Our paper sets out to explore the factors that contribute to a better or worse performance of militias with regard to civilian wellbeing. We use three waves of quantitative and qualitative survey data from North-East Afghanistan to test four hypotheses derived from our qualitative research. The four hypotheses relate to mechanisms which are expected to influence militia behaviour in the sense of making militias less threatening to the civilian population.

• Year2018
• Author(s)Basir Feda, Kristóf Gosztonyi, Jan Koehler

Scenarios are stories of possible futures. Human beings have always used stories to talk about things that are difficult, complex, or even taboo, to encourage a change in thinking, illuminate pathways, and inspire right action. Creating and telling stories about possible futures allows us to lift our gaze above our current stuck situations and polarized conversations into a longer time horizon and ask ourselves “what if?”

• Year2018
• Author(s)Mille Bøjer

• Year2018

Governance systems differ from one state to another depending on the politics in each state, its social, economic and cultural development, and other historical factors. Symmetry in the form and content of relations between local governance units, or between units and central authority, is rare. Local governance embodies decentralization, and is essentially a system that allows citizens to run their own local affairs. It should therefore be based on a set of principles and objectives as preconditions for applying decentralization and the goals for local governance set by the state and local communities.

• Year2018
• Author(s)Abdul-Raqib Fatih

The aim of this paper is to describe the reality of local authority legislation in Yemen, underline its strengths and weaknesses, identify the main obstacles to its implementation, and present suggestions for improving it. To attain these objectives, an integrated approach was followed based on the review and analysis of existing literature and official documents, as well as one-on-one interviews with a number of public administration leaders at central and local levels.

• Year2018
• Author(s)Ahmed Mohamed Al-Mawari

This paper, by an academic and political activist in Sana'a, will shed light on the resources available to local authorities in the Republic of Yemen, highlight the constraints on revenue collection, and propose how to address them and develop Yemeni local authority revenue streams.

This paper relies on a number of references – listed at the bottom – as well as various meetings with academics, researchers and specialists to enrich the ideas it discusses.

• Year2018
• Author(s)Anonymous