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The journal and articles are open to researchers, civic actors and writers from Darfur and Sudan. We look for knowledge grounded in local reality that helps people working on the ground.

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Darfur: Context and Insights · Issue 2

The political process in Sudan: paths to a settlement, refounding the state, and Darfur’s place in the future of peace. We accept policy papers, strategic studies, scenario papers and comparative studies.

Summary deadline
31 January 2027
Full paper due
30 April 2027
Publication
31 July 2027
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Call for papers · Darfur: Context and Insights · Issue 2

The Political Process in Sudan

Paths to a settlement, refounding the state, and Darfur’s place in the future of peace and political transition

The question of this issue
Can the current political process produce a settlement that addresses the roots of the crisis in Darfur and lays the ground for a stable Sudan, or is it at risk of reproducing the marginalisation and top-down deals of the past?

Sudan is seeing renewed political and diplomatic activity as regional and international efforts seek to end the war and prepare the ground for a political process that stops the conflict and opens the way to a settlement addressing the roots of the national crisis and founding a new stage of state-building.

Darfur sits at the heart of these efforts as a central issue and the real test of the process. This is not only because of the scale of the humanitarian disaster and the reach of the conflict in the region, but because Sudan’s stability is bound up with Darfur’s structural questions: the system of government, the relationship between the centre and the regions, justice and accountability, and dismantling the local and regional drivers of conflict.

Past settlements have shown that any political process that ignores the realities on the ground in Darfur, or reduces the region to elite power-sharing, ends up reproducing the war. The New Civil Society Development Institute therefore invites contributions to the second issue of its peer-reviewed journal, Darfur: Context and Insights, under the title “The Political Process in Sudan”.

The issue seeks critical, forward-looking analysis that takes Darfur as the entry point for understanding the paths of the political process, and tests the options on the table by their capacity to deliver a just and comprehensive peace in the region and in Sudan as a whole.

Themes

01

Darfur on the agenda of the political process

  • Darfur’s geopolitical positionHow much weight Darfur carries in current regional and international initiatives (the Quad, the Quintet and other mediations), and how seriously they address the roots of the conflict.
  • Representation and inclusionWays to secure genuine representation for Darfur beyond elite capture, including local communities, displaced people and refugees, women, young people and native administrations.
  • The fate of earlier agreementsA critical reading of the Juba Peace Agreement and earlier regional agreements in light of the war.
  • The balance of forcesHow the current military and political map in Darfur shapes the future of the national process.
02

The wider political scene and Darfur

  • Developments in the processCritical analysis of the negotiation tracks and their likely effects on stability in Darfur and Sudan.
  • Coordinating the tracksHow regional and international interests intersect in Darfur, and what that means for a single, inclusive Sudanese negotiating platform.
  • Positions of the parties and civilian forcesHow political, civilian and military blocs see Darfur’s issues in the expected settlement.
03

Refounding the state through Darfur

  • Government and decentralisationFederalism, institutional transparency, and recasting the relationship between Khartoum, Darfur and the other regions.
  • Resources and wealthFrameworks for fair wealth-sharing, balanced development, and redressing Darfur’s historical imbalances.
  • Transitional justice and accountabilityAddressing human rights violations, reparations and impunity as a condition for lasting peace in Darfur.
  • Security and institutional reformWhat comprehensive security arrangements require, and building civilian and security institutions that reflect the country’s diversity.
04

Darfur and Sudan after a settlement

  • Security and protection of civiliansMechanisms for a lasting ceasefire and for protecting local communities and displaced people in Darfur.
  • Recovery and communities of peaceThe practical challenges of return, reconstruction and basic services in Darfur’s towns and villages.
  • Civil society and local actorsEnabling Darfur’s living forces to guard and implement peace at the grassroots.
  • Scenarios 2027–2030Darfur’s options and future under scenarios in which the national process succeeds or stalls.

What we accept

  • Policy papers
  • Strategic studies and analyses
  • Scenario and political foresight papers
  • Comparative studies and peacebuilding experiences relevant to Darfur

Who should submit

Researchers and academics working on Darfur and Sudan, public policy experts, practitioners in peacebuilding and mediation, civic and community leaders, and early-career researchers.

Acceptance criteria

  • A focus on DarfurPapers start from Darfur’s realities and issues and their relationship to the national political process.
  • Critical depth and originalityDocumented critical analysis grounded in evidence, going beyond news narrative.
  • Foresight and applicationActionable policy recommendations for decision-makers and civic actors.
How the issue is builtThe issue opens with a paper by the editor-in-chief framing Darfur’s core questions in the political process, and closes with a synthesis paper that draws together the findings of the published papers and the options ahead.

Timeline

  1. November 2026Call opens; summaries accepted
  2. 31 January 2027Deadline for summaries
  3. 15 February 2027Notification of accepted summaries
  4. 30 April 2027Full papers due
  5. 1 May – 30 June 2027Peer review, editing and revisions
  6. 1–25 July 2027Design, layout and printing
  7. 31 July 2027Issue 2 published
Publication coincides with the anniversary of the resolution on the protection of civilians and peace in Darfur.

How to submit

Send an executive summary of 300–500 words setting out the paper’s title, conceptual framework, link to Darfur’s issues and target theme, together with a short CV. Use the form below, or write to:

info@ncsdi.org Send your summary

What we publish

Field research paperSurvey, interviews or focus groups, with method and sample. 6,000–9,000 words
Policy paperA defined problem, options and actionable recommendations. 4,000–6,000 words
Position paperA clear argument on a public question, backed by evidence. 2,500–4,000 words
Analytical articleA reading of an event or trend for a general audience. 1,000–2,000 words
Field testimonyA direct experience told by the person who lived it. 500–1,200 words or 10 min audio
Lengths are proposed and subject to the editorial board.

Acceptance criteria

  • Original and previously unpublished work.
  • Verifiable sources, with links where possible.
  • For surveys: state the sample size, how it was drawn, and where and when.
  • Recommendations that follow from the findings and name who acts on them.
  • No naming of people or groups in ways that could endanger them, and no photos of beneficiaries.
Your safety first: If publishing your name puts you at risk, use a pseudonym. Only the editor-in-chief knows your real name.

From submission to publication

  1. 01 Receipt and screening We check the work fits the call and the criteria. Within two weeks
  2. 02 Review Two reviewers for papers; one editor for articles and testimonies. Within six weeks
  3. 03 Revision We send comments and you return a revised version. Within two weeks
  4. 04 Publication Edited and published as an interactive reading on the site, with a PDF. With the issue

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Type of work
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