Aim: The aim of the course is to critically survey the different approaches used in the study of conflict, theories about the causes of conflict, levels and processes of conflict.

Content: The course examines the theories of conflict, levels of conflict, types and characteristics of conflict, causes of conflict; actors and interests in conflict. It explores conflict cycles, the notion of conflict systems, and the relationship between internal and international conflicts, evaluates case studies of conflicts in Africa, and relates religious fundamentalism to conflict.

Aim: The course aims at an in-depth examination of the main themes, theories, paradigms and debates that dominate the study, understanding and practice of contemporary international relations.

Aim: This course aims at explaining the theme and dynamics of conflict as understood in African traditional culture and exploring alternative dispute resolution structures and mechanisms.

Content: The course seeks to define the concepts of culture, conflict, and change. It focuses on the theoretical approaches toward culture and conflict, political organization, purpose and justification of the use of violence in selected societies, enemy images, race, class and ethnicity, coping mechanisms, dispute resolution strategies, women in conflict and African religious teachings on violence.

Aim: The aim of this course it to explore the notions, language, and approaches in dispute resolution and conflict management.

Content: The course seeks to examine the aspects involved in the processes of conflict management. It describes negotiation, mediation, theories of mediation and negotiation, third party intervention, judicial settlement, arbitration, conciliation, good offices, humanitarian intervention, and peacekeeping. It also seeks to assess and evaluate the case studies in Africa, problems of ethnic conflict in Africa, environmental conflicts, institutional conflict management in Africa: AU, ECOMOG, SADC, the role of civil society, types of outcomes, post-conflict structures, gender and conflict, and the role of organized religion in conflict and conflict management.

Aim: The course aims to examine the moral and ethical justifications of war and the search for peace.

Content: The course will discuss ethical and religious perspectives on war and peace.  It will discuss the morality of ‘killing human beings’ and examine the justifications for the use of force.  The course will also explore the nature and conduct of religious conflicts, and discuss the implication of the rise of religious fundamentalism on world peace and security.  It will discuss the role of religious institutions in responding to the consequences of conflict, including displaced people.  It will also describe the role of the church and religion in liberation struggles, international security, conflict management and dispute resolution.

Aim: This course aims at exploring the motivations and operations of regional economic blocs.
 
Content: The course will define regional integration, globalization and resultant increase in free trade, migration, capital movement, information exchange and technology transfer.  It will explore the debates for and against regional integration and globalization.  The course will describe the mechanisms of modern globalization and its consequences, including erosion of state sovereignty, higher degree of political and economic freedom; and critique the formation of regional economic blocs.  It will analyze the relations between unequally-developed states and regions, and describe the negative effects of for-profit multinational corporations and the impact of economic globalization on political governance.  The course will examine the implications of regional integration and globalization on regional peace and security, and the role of regional economic blocs in the search for peace, and in ensuring social justice, peace and security, and sustainable prosperity.

Aim: The aim of this course it to explore the notions, language, and approaches in dispute resolution and conflict management.

Content: The course seeks to examine the aspects involved in the processes of conflict management. It describes negotiation, mediation, theories of mediation and negotiation, third party intervention, judicial settlement, arbitration, conciliation, good offices, humanitarian intervention, and peacekeeping. It also seeks to assess and evaluate the case studies in Africa, problems of ethnic conflict in Africa, environmental conflicts, institutional conflict management in Africa: AU, ECOMOG, SADC, the role of civil society, types of outcomes, post-conflict structures, gender and conflict, and the role of organized religion in conflict and conflict management.

Aim: The course aims at examining environmental variables in development and regional security.

Content: The course will discuss the main environmental issues addressed by international and regional instruments; examine the commitments imposed on state parties by these Instruments, elaborate on shared environmental resources and ecosystems. It will elaborate on the national and regional mechanisms and procedures for addressing environmental disputes. It will examine the institutional arrangements for the administration of environmental programs, natural resource degradation, and resource-based conflicts. It will discuss priority areas in the management and restoration of shared environmental resources, individual and group access rights, and inter-community conflict management.  The course will look at responsibility for present and future generations, Production and consumption patterns, liability for damage, and the implication of environmental variables on regional peace and security.

Aim: The course aims to survey and analyze the trends, processes and issues that have characterized the international behaviour of African states since independence.

Aim: This course will discuss the main concepts and areas of international law that will enhance the students’ understanding of international human rights and related rights, and the linkage between human rights and international relations.

Content: This course seeks to describe the theoretical and normative issues in international law, to discuss the different generations of  human rights, the status of state and individuals in international law, the rights and obligations of sovereign states and individuals, specialized international agencies such as UNICEF, UNIFEM, etc. it also addresses the notion of the universality of human rights protection and enforcement of human rights, regional human rights regimes, human rights and governance, human rights violations, refugee movements, religion, culture and human rights, and vulnerable groups in conflict situations.

Aim: The course aims at explaining the evolution and logic of peacekeeping and the conduct of peace keeping operations.

Content: The course examines the origin and mandate of peacekeeping it defines the conditions under which peacekeeping by the United Nations or regional organization takes place and describes the process of creating a peacekeeping mission. It examines the categories and responsibilities of peacekeepers, and explains the symbols used during peacekeeping operations. It also assesses UN cooperation with regional organizations, and discusses practical aspects, including the financing of peace missions, training of peacekeepers deployment, safety of personnel and the challenges on the ground. It explores the role of civilian policing, and examines specific roles of peace-keeping missions, including monitoring ceasefires, disarmament, patrolling buffer zones and demining.

Aim: The course discusses the biblical sources of sustainable peace building and explores the theological bases both of just war theory and the practice of pacifism in terms of Christian discipleship within the framework of power relations in today’s international system.

Content: The course discusses theologies of peace-building, gives historical examples of just war theory and pacifism, and shows how strong, active, effective Christian non-violence can meet the multiple challenges of African conflict situations.

Aim: To introduce students to the background and current international economic issues.

Content: The course will examine the various aspects of macro and micro-economics, money and banking, impact of technological change, global lending and borrowing, structural adjustment programmes, foreign exchange rates and foreign direct investment. It also explores bilateral and multilateral trade agreement, multi-national corporations, labour and migration policies, promotion of trade, and economic problems affecting Africa, including debt, foreign aid, armed conflict and capital flight.  It examines efforts to redeem the situation, including North-South co-operation, customs unions and regional trade preference, with a focus of selected sectors of international trade.

Aim: This course focuses on the basic research techniques and skills applied in field work.

Content: The course seeks to define the term research and its related concepts, and explore the debates in social science. It will also examine language use, notions of validity, explanation and prediction in social science, analyze the inter-paradigm debate in international relations, and tackle specific aspects including the problem, research designs, measurement designs, data collection and data analysis, report writing and dissemination of findings.

Aim: This course aims at examining the unequal process of industrialization and modernization between rich and poor countries.

Content: The course will explain factors leading to the unequal development of the North and South, discuss the process of industrialization and modernization, and analyze dependence theories. It will describe the spread of capitalism from developed to developing nations, and examine the post-cold war multi-lateral relations between the North and the South Conservatism and the growth of the global disequilibrium, and discuss the economic crises of the 1980s. It will discuss North-South cooperation, including Structural Adjustment Programmes, regional trading blocs, preferential trade agreements, NEPAD, the Uruguay Round. The course will also debate the implications of Eastern Bloc reform for South-North Relations.

Aim: To explore the legal and political aspects of managing refugees and internally displaced persons.

Content: The course will examine diplomatic and minimum standards of treatment, refugee rights and obligations, non-refoulement, regional refugees’ documentations, the impact of refugees on host governments, and the role of refugees and peace-building.  It will assess the threat of AIDS and Anti-Terrorism laws on resettlement, and examine the circumstances of refugee women and children.

Aim: The aim of this course is to introduce students to psychological explanations of violence as part of the search for peace.

Content: The course will define the concepts and notions of peace, and elaborate psychological explanations of conflict transformation.  It will examine the basis for and consequences of discrimination, faultiness and prejudice, labeling, perceptions of self in relation to the ‘other’ and resultant gradients, polarization and depolarization.  It will also examine preconditions for reconciliation, including perceptions of equality and reciprocity, nature of offender-victim relations, and empathy.  The course will also discuss strategies for post-conflict healing and rehabilitation, appraise institutional initiatives of peace building, and examine the challenges to a sustainable transition to peace.

All Masters Students are required to undertake a research project related to their Master’s thesis. The area of research has to be specified: it may consist of either a case study of a particular peace process, field work or any issue concerning peace, conflict, or security. The international implications have to be integrated into the method or framework of the research.

The research project is to be submitted together with a Thesis Proposal. They have to be presented, defended and approved by a minimum of three panelists as a fulfillment of the Comprehensive Examination, prior to the writing of the dissertation.

Aim: The course examines modern diplomacy, in its many aspects, as the essential element in the conduct of civilized international relations and the achievement of a world order of peace, justice, human rights and development.

Content:  The course investigates the nature and functions of diplomacy (bilateral and multilateral, formal and informal, etc), its historical development, its structures (foreign office, embassies, missions, international organizations and conferences), diplomacy as a profession (ranks, qualities, selection, privileges and immunities), and its purposes and functions (representation, intelligence-gathering and particularly negotiations).  Attention is given to policy-formation, negotiating strategies, and the constraints of international law and ethics. Historical case studies and memoirs are used.

Aim: The course will have two components: the first dealing with the theoretical underpinnings and the historical development of bilateral and multilateral diplomacy while the second part will focus on aspects informing actual diplomatic practice in the 21st Century.

Topics to be covered      

1. Introduction to the study of diplomacy: definitions and functions of diplomacy.
2. Paradigms of diplomacy: diplomacy and international relations; diplomacy and international law; diplomacy and foreign policy analysis; diplomacy and international conflict management.
3. The historical development of bilateral diplomacy
4. The historical development of multilateral diplomacy
5. The interaction between diplomacy and domestic politics
6. The linkages between bilateral and multilateral diplomacy
7. Diplomacy and the media
8. The diplomacy of development
9. Documents of diplomacy: the role and classification of the documents of diplomacy; documents of internal diplomatic correspondence; documents of external diplomatic correspondence; documents of diplomatic appointment.
10. The process of bilateral diplomatic negotiations
11. The process of multilateral diplomatic negotiations
12. Rules of the process of diplomacy: classes of heads of mission, functions of diplomatic missions, immunities, privileges and facilities.

For the completion of the MA, students must submit a dissertation/thesis of not more than 20,000 words.  The Master’s thesis is prepared under the supervision of the student’s mentor. Approval of three readers is required for the successful completion of the thesis.

The thesis should be an original contribution to the body of human knowledge, well researched and documented, professionally presented and of a high standard of academic endeavour.