This political economy analysis focuses on the industrial and artisanal timber sectors in Central Africa and is undertaken by TPP Principal Olly Owen and new TPP Associate Theodore Trefon, together with a local team.

The Policy Practice has been assisting the World Bank Governance Practice pilot clinics and a training course to support the roll-out of its new GovEnable approach since January 2023.  

The team, led by Gareth Williams, TPP Director, and lead researcher Theodore Trefon, undertook a political economy analysis (PEA) as part of the on-going Demographic Diagnostics Commission. The PEA built on DFID’s understanding of historical legacies, political interests and DFID’s room for manoeuvre in the contexts in which DFID is working.

This is a comparative study donor of approaches to risk management in fragile and conflict affected states. The findings are based on evidence from four case study countries: Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Somalia and Nepal (and additional examples drawn from Myanmar, Afghanistan and Haiti). The study was commissioned by the OECD INCAF Task Team on Finance and Aid, who identified a need to complement ongoing policy level work on risk management with evidence from the field on how donors manage risk in practice.

This literature review of the political economy of the basic education sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) draws on over 50 published and unpublished reports. It has also been informed by a DFID workshop held on 11 July 2012 on the political economy of education in DRC. The report is divided into three parts.

This study analyses the progress of public financial management (PFM) reforms in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and prospects for further change. It provides a diagnosis of the strengths and weaknesses of public financial management, mainly at the level of central government. It then explains this performance and the progress of reforms using political economy analysis to identify the incentives and interests that may block or promote change.

The Policy Practice provided analytical and drafting support for this report, which brings together experience from six countries on the implementation of the Ten Principles for Good International Engagement in Fragile States and Situations. This involved synthesising the proceedings of six country consultations (Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Sierra Leone and Timor Leste) and co-authoring the Global Report.