2016

“Explaining Joseph Kabila’s Reluctance to Leave Office”
Georges Nzongola-Ntalaja, Professor of African Studies, University of North Carolina
February 10, 2016

2015

“Africa: Why Economists Get It Wrong”
Morten Jerven, Simon Frazer University
October 7, 2015

“How to Make Government Work for Africa”
Nick Thompson, CEO of the African Governance Initiative
November 9, 2015

“Will Africa Feed China?”
Book Launch with Professor Deborah Brautigam, SAIS International Development Program
Moderated by Professor David Lampton, SAIS China Studies Program
Discussants:
Dr. Amadou Sy, Director of the Africa Growth Initiative at the Brookings Institution
Professor Ling Chen, Assistant Professor of International Political Economy
October 29, 2015

“Internationally Assisted Elections: The Impact on Transitional Countries—Sierra Leone, Liberia, Burkina Faso, and Congo”
Arsène Brice Bado, University of Laval and Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
November 18, 2015

2014

“Betrayed: Politics, Power, and Prosperity”
Seth Kaplan, professorial lecturer in the African Studies Program, will discuss his new bok Betrayed: Politics, Power, and Prosperity.
April 2, 2014

“Peace Land: Conflict Resolution and the Everyday Politics of International Intervention”
Séverine Autesserre, Columbia University
September 25, 2014

“Loot, Pillage, and Plunder: Prosecuting Economic War Crimes in the 21st Century”
Panel Discussion
October 8, 2014

2013

“Making and Unmaking Nations: The Dynamics of Mass Violence and Genocide in Contemporary Africa”
Scott Straus, University of Wisconsin
April 18, 2013

“A New U.S. Policy for Democratic Governance in the Congo”
Anthony Gambino, Independent Consultant
Stephen R. Weissman, Independent Consultant
April 22, 2013

“D.R. Congo: How the Kampala Talks and the Concertations Nationales Undermine the Rule of Law and Fuel Instability”
Albert Moleka, SAIS Alum ‘82
Chief of Staff, Etienne Tshisekedi
October 16, 2013

“The Limits of Institutional Reform in Development: New Ideas, Changing Approaches”
Matt Andrews, Harvard Kennedy School
October 31, 2013

2012

“Extractives, Equity and Conflict: Lessons from Work at Local, National and International Levels”
February 14, 2012

“The Congo’s Botched Election: Where Do We Go From Here?”
Tony Gambino, Fellow, Eastern Congo Initiative
Mvembe Dizolele, Hoover Institute
Jason Stearns, Yale University
February 15, 2012

2011

“New Approaches to Mining and Development”
Michael D. Jarvis, World Bank Institute, Click here for PPT Presentation
Heinz Pley, McKinsey Institute, Click here for PPT Presentation
March 16, 2011

“State Building in the DRC: Theory and Practice” Part 1
Francis Fukuyama, Stanford University
Severine Autesserre, Columbia University
March 30, 2011

“State Building in the DRC: Theory and Practice” Part 2 (Click for Audio)
Crawford Young, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Mvemba Dizolele, SAIS African Studies Program
April 14, 2011

“Une place, une responsabilité: Face au double défi des élections et de la reconstruction de la République Démocratique du Congo”
Remy Masamba, UDPS Secrétaire du Parti, Chef de mission
April 27, 2011

“The Second Presidential Elections in the DRC”
Médard Mulangala Lwakabwanga, Depute National and member of the opposition, Democratic Republic of Congo
September 22, 2011

“Rule of Law for 2011: Fair Elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo”
Kengo Wa Dondo, Presidential Candidate, Democratic Republic of Congo
September 27, 2011

“Advocacy in the Democratic Republic of Congo: Stakeholders Conference”

October 5: How the Story of Congo Gets Told
Laura Seay, Morehouse University and Texasinafrica
Mvemba Dizolele, Stanford University
John Prendergast, The Enough Project (invited)
Kambale Musavuli, Friends of Congo

October 6: Advocacy and the Way Forward
Adotei Akwei, Amnesty International
Rick Goss, Information Technology Industry Council (ITIC)
Eric Kajemba, Observatoire Gouvernance et Paix (OGP)
Claudine Tsongo, Dynamique de Femmes Juristes

2010

“Conflict the DR Congo and the Role of International Actors: An NGO Perspective”
David Sullivan, The Enough Project
Maurice Carney, Friend of the Congo
March 10

“Does Democracy Have a Future in the DRC?”
Mvemba Dizolele, Visiting Scholar, SAIS/Stanford University
April 2, 2010

“The Political Dynamics of Conflict in the Great Lakes Region”
Gerard Prunier, University of Paris
November 1, 2010

“Congo: The UN Mapping Report and The Responsibility to Justice”
Mvemba Dizolele, SAIS Visiting Scholar, Independent journalist
Carina Tertsakian, Senior Researcher at Human Rights Watch, Africa Division
Peter Rosenblum, Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein Clinical Professorship of Human Rights Law, Columbia Law School
Anthony Gambino, Independent Consultant, former USAID Mission Director for the DRC
Laura Seay, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Morehouse College
Moderator: Peter Lewis, Director of the African Studies Program at SAIS
December 2, 2010

2009

“State Building in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: The Challenge of the Margins”
Denis Tull, Senior Research Fellow German Institute for International and Security Affairs
January 28, 2009

“Security and Development in the Eastern DRC: Toward a Public-Private Partnership”
Herman Cohen , former Assistant Secretary of State for Africa and SAIS African Studies
Raymond Gilpin , US Institute of Peace
Patience Kabamba , Emory University
March 11, 2009

“Conflict in the Great Lakes”
Rene Lemarchand, Professor Emeritus, University of Florida
April 8, 2009

“Peace Building in the Democratic Republic of the Congo”
Francois Grignon, Director, Africa Program, International Crisis Group
April 17, 2009

“Negotiating and Contesting Public order in Eastern DR Congo”
Koen Vlassenroot, Professor and Conflict Research Group Coordinator, Ghent University
April 24, 2009

“The Future of U.S. Military Involvement in Africa: The Case of the Democratic Republic of Congo”
Amb. William Garvelink, US Ambassador to DRC
Prosper Bunzigiye, Congolese Human Rights Activist
Lauren Ploch, Congressional Research Service
Emira Woods, moderator
Co-sponsored with the Institute for Policy Studies
October 1, 2009

“CSR in Practice: Inherent Global and Local Challenges. Case Studies from Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)”
Shari Knoerzer, Director, Social Responsibility and Community Development, Freeport McMoRan
October 5, 2009

“Congo Masquerade: why reform initiatives have failed”
Theodore Trefon, Director, Historical Studies, Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, Belgium
October 8, 2009

“Getting MONUCs Role Right after a Year of Profound Failure: Realities, Options and Prospects”
Anthony Gambino, Independent Consultant Former USAID Director, DRC
November 18, 2009

“The Great African War” (DRC)
Filip Reyntjens, Professor of Law and Politics, University of Antwerp
Co-sponsored with the Great Lakes Policy Forum
December 3, 2009

2008

“Failing the Congo: Local Violence and International Intervention”
Severine Autesserre, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Barnard College and Columbia University
October 1, 2008

“Dying but Not Dead: is Resurrection of the Congo State Possible?”
Theodore Trefon, Contemporary History Section of the Royal Museum for Central Africa, Belgium
October 15, 2008

“Eastern DRC: Violence and Volatility in the Midst of Plenty?”
Delphine Schrank, Freelance Reporter, International Reporting Project, JHU-SAIS
November 5, 2008

“Legal Command and Local State Resilience in the DRC”
Pierre Englebert, Associate Professor of Politics, Pomona College
November 12, 2008

2006

“The Elections in the DRC: Perspectives from International Observers “
Nancy J. Walker, President of AfricaNet
Tatiana Carayannis, Research Manager, UN Intellectual History Project
Tony Gambino and Paul Simo, Independent consultants
Great Lakes Policy Forum
September 7, 2006

“Elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Context and Results”
Herbert Weiss, Woodrow Wilson Center Senior Policy Scholar
September 20, 2006

“Natural Resource Management in Post-Elections DRC”
Anneke Van Woudenberg, Senior Researcher, Human Rights Watch
Ivan Rossignol, Senior Private Sector Development Specialist, World Bank
Great Lakes Policy Forum
October 5, 2006

“Securing Congo’s Future – What Comes Next?”
Caty Clement, Director, Crisis Group’s Nairobi-based Central Africa Division
October 27, 2006

“Webs of War in the DRC: Hybrid Wars, Conflict Networks, and Multilateral Responses”
Tatiana Carayannis, Associate director of the Conflict Prevention and Peace Forum (CPPF) at the Social Science Research Council
November 8, 2006