Fellows in Residence
Ken Menkhaus, Ph.D
Professor of Political Science at Davidson College
Public Address: “Crisis and Conflict in the Horn of Africa: Implications for the United States”
Hartness Pavilion, Furman University
Monday, September 24, 2007
Menkhaus is a professor of political science at Davidson College. Menkhaus received his Ph.D. in International Studies at the University of South Carolina in 1989. Prior to assuming his post at Davidson College, he taught for two years at the American University in Cairo, Egypt.
Menkhaus’ regional specialization is the Horn of Africa. His fields of interest include state failure, protracted conflict, post-conflict reconstruction, humanitarian intervention, and political Islam. In 1991, he worked with the International Committee of the Red Cross in southern Somalia conducting famine assessments. In 1993-94, he served as special political advisor in the United Nations (UN) Operation in Somalia, and he was a recipient of a US Institute of Peace grant in 2002 to study protracted conflict in the Horn of Africa.
About Dr. Menkhaus
Menkhaus is a frequent consultant to the US government, UN, and non-governmental organizations. His recent consultancies include a Policy and Program Analysis on Somalia for USAID (2004); a study of Somalia-Kenya border conflict, commissioned by Development Alternatives Inc. for USAID (2005); a co-authored study of the political transition in the Democratic Republic of Congo, commissioned by Development Alternatives Inc for USAID (2005); a case study of a UNDP small arms control project in Somaliland, commissioned by Small Arms Survey (2005);a report on Somalia for International Crisis Group (2007) and a research associate position in the Human Security Baseline Assessment in Sudan, managed by Small Arms Survey in Geneva (2007).
His most recent publications include: “The Crisis in Somalia: Tragedy in Five Acts.” African Affairs (July 2007); “The Somali Catastrophe: Bigger Than the Horn — and Not Over Yet.” Current History (May 2007); “Constraints and Opportunities in Ungoverned Spaces: The Horn of Africa. ” In Denial of Sanctuary: Understanding Terrorist Safe Havens, edited by Michael Innes, (2007); “Local Security Systems in Somali East Africa.” In Fragile States and Insecure People, edited by Louise Andersen and Bjørn Møller (forthcoming 2007); and “Governance without Government in Somalia: Spoilers, State Building, and the Politics of Coping.”International Security (Winter 2006/07).