BICC - Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies

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BICC - Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies

Dedicated to research and policy advice on the conditions, dynamics and consequences of violent conflicts. 🌍 Worldwide. The Center is headed by a Director.

As an independent, non-profit organization, BICC (Internationales Konversionszentrum Bonn – Bonn International Center for Conversion) deals with a wide range of global topics in the field of peace and conflict research. Program Areas
The six following areas form the framework for BICC’s work
• Security—Stakeholders, systems, threats
• Arms—Global trends, exports, control
• Resources and conflict

• Migration, conflicts and security
• Base conversion
• Data and GIS (Geographic Information Systems)
These areas are mutually complementary and enable diverse thematic and methodological synergies. BICC’s Work
BICC’s portfolio includes applied research, advisory services and capacity development. Partners, donors and Clients
BICC receives institutional funding from the Land of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). This funding enables the Center to perform research projects and research-based policy advice with funding from a variety of donors. Other partners, donors and clients are
International and German research institutes; international and German foundations; the United Nations and other international organizations; Federal Ministries such as the German Foreign Office (AA) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and institutions such as the Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb); international and German NGOs; international and bilateral organizations in the field of development cooperation. BICC
BICC makes use of its research work to operate as a think tank, offer (policy) advisory services, and help develop capacity. BICC collects and publishes information, brings out expert reports and other publications, and thus offers its services to NGOs, governments, private organizations, research institutes and universities as well as to the interested public. BICC is co-editor of the annual “Friedensgutachten” (Peace Report) and of a series of international research publications (Sustainable Peace and Global Security Governance). BICC organizes regular exhibitions, conferences, workshops, and discussions with experts. The Center sets out to make more people aware of its central topics through its public relations work. BICC was founded as a non-profit limited company in 1994 with the support of the Land of NRW. Shareholders are the State of NRW and Brandenburg. The Center’s governing bodies are the Supervisory Board, the Board of Trustees and the International Board.

19/06/2026

Building the knowledge and skills to counter diversion and manage weapons and ammunition effectively—from 29 June to 3 July 2026, this five-day national-level training in Yaoundé brings together members of the National DDR Committee (NDDRC) and key security stakeholders to strengthen Cameroon's technical, conceptual, and strategic capacity in Weapons and Ammunition Management and SALW Control. The training concludes with a high-level segment at the International Relations Institute of Cameroon (IRIC), uniting national institutions, the diplomatic corps, civil society, and international and regional organisations in a shared commitment to advancing DDR in Cameroon.

More info here -> https://shorturl.at/FngP3

Regional Centre on Small Arms - RECSA, Auswärtiges Amt, African Union, Lake Chad Basin Commission

17/06/2026

Growing operational ties between Lakurawa and Mamudawa insurgent groups across Nigeria's tri-border region with Niger and Benin are driving a surge in civilian harm, including the abduction of over 150 women and children in Kwara State in February 2026.

Our latest policy brief of the PAVE project argues that episodic, incident-driven military operations are no longer sufficient. Steady protection in at-risk areas, secure local reporting and viable in-country relocation options for families leaving high risk areas are urgently needed to disrupt insurgent alliance-building and prevent further entrenchment across the region.

Read our recommendations here. ➡️ https://shorturl.at/NDz7e

16/06/2026

On June 12, Nigeria marked 27 years of uninterrupted democratic transition. bicc Senior Researcher Oyewole Oginni spoke to Channels Television on why insurgency remains one of Nigeria's greatest democratic challenges and why security must be understood as a governance outcome rather than a military or security response alone.

Watch the full interview here (15:08) ➡️https://shorturl.at/rljtX

12/06/2026

📢 Call for applications: PhD scholarship at Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn for a dissertation related to carbon credits and conflict. Apply by 21 June 2026.

The scholarship is part of the “Violent Futures?” project (a sub-project of the "Future Rural Africa" project), which examines how future-oriented carbon credit projects shape social relations and conflicts in Kenya and Tanzania. The dissertation examines whether and how carbon credit projects mitigate or intensify existing conflicts related to nature conservation. To this end, candidates are expected to conduct long-term ethnographic research on conflict constellations in Tanzania and Kenya.

Duration of Scholarship: 41 months
Monthly stipend: 1,475 €
Start date: ideally 1 August 2026
Application deadline: 21 June 2026

"Violent Futures?" is a joint project between Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, bicc - Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies, Universität zu Köln, and Mzumbe University.

Learn more on the "Future Rural Africa" project website: https://crc-trr228.de/call-for-applications-phd-scholarship-violent-futures-contestations-along-carbon-frontiers-in-east-africa/

08/06/2026

Just published: Peace Report 2026!
Imperialist power politics is reshaping the landscape of war, peace, and security. States are increasingly acting like warlords and using war as a political tool. Transitions from violent conflict to peace are treated as “deals”; middle powers such as the Gulf states are emerging with new self-confidence but an ambivalent course; and technological innovation is transforming warfare and making regulation more difficult. At the same time, international cooperation in peacekeeping—such as in development cooperation or within the United Nations—is in the midst of its most severe crisis. Domestically, racist attitudes are also on the rise in Germany. The 2026 Peace Report analyses options for promoting peace nonetheless.

Available in print and as an Open Access download from . Learn more at www.friedensgutachten.de (Language: mostly German, with the recommendations and opening statement also in English)

03/06/2026

Local governance in Afghanistan has been fundamentally transformed since 2021—and this has important implications for development actors.

Since 2021, the Taliban authorities have systematically dismantled elected community councils, replacing them with governance structures led by loyal religious appointees. This policy brief examines the trade-offs development actors face between access, inclusion and legitimacy—dilemmas that cannot be fully resolved, only continuously managed.

Read our recommendations here ➡️https://shorturl.at/DOUcF

02/06/2026

Flucht ist eine der größten Herausforderungen unserer Zeit. Der ‚Report Globale Flucht‘ beleuchtet das Thema aus verschiedenen Perspektiven, kritisiert unzureichende Asylpolitik und vermittelt konstruktive Lösungsansätze. Der Bericht erscheint jährlich im Rahmen des Verbundprojekts ‚Flucht- und Flüchtlingsforschung: Vernetzung und Transfer‘ (FFVT). Ein besonderer Fokus liegt dieses Jahr auf der Wechselwirkung zwischen Flucht und Klimawandel.

Zu den Herausgeber:innen des Berichts zählt auch der bicc-Forscher Benjamin Etzold. Die Publikation enthält zudem ein Gespräch zwischen ihm und dem South African Refugee-led Network. Darüber hinaus steuern die bicc-Forschenden Osman Bahadir Dincer und Zeynep Şahin-Mencütek ein Kapitel über die Herausforderungen der Rückkehr syrischer Geflüchteter in ihr Heimatland bei.

Der Report ist erstmals kostenlos als Open Access verfügbar ➡️ https://shorturl.at/rIYVk

27/05/2026

Armed conflict, militarisation and the impacts of resource extraction are disporpotionally affecting Indigenous communities on , Philippines, not only in their daily lives but their cultural continuity.

This project explores the daily dimensions of peace through the framework of ‘peacescapes’, understanding how peace is imagined, practised and sustained through Indigenous knowledge systems, cultural practices and eco-relational worldviews, while examining how these visions and practices evolve amid broader social and political change. In an effort to bridge academic research and civil society , the project partners with Mindanao State University and Balay Mindanaw Foundation, Inc. -Basilan to contribute to decolonialising methodologies and support grassroots advocacy.

Find out more about the project ➡️ https://shorturl.at/DHfQL

26/05/2026

In his new journal article, bicc Fellow Ryan Swan explores the Thucydides Trap—the tendency towards conflict between an established power and a rising one. He examines implications for the present US–China rivalry, showing how global influence is increasingly defined outside the defence realm. He argues that heavy investment in traditional defence buildups can ultimately lead to disadvantage in contemporary power competition by yielding ground in other pivotal domains. The article shows how the United States fell into this 'new' Thucydides Trap, inadvertently facilitating China’s relative rise.

Read the full article ➡️ https://shorturl.at/1woqp

21/05/2026

Global armament dynamics remain uneven, despite rising military spending worldwide.

The Global Militarisation Index (GMI) maps the relative weight and importance of a country’s military apparatus in relation to its society as a whole and currently covers 151 countries. It aims to contribute to the greater debate on the benefits and risks of militarisation worldwide.

This year's GMI highlights the regional differences—Europe, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) remain the world's most militarised regions—and how factors such as financial resources, military personnel and active conflict zones shape varying levels of militarisation across states, while military spending elsewhere is stagnating relative to civilian benchmarks such as economic output and health expenditure.

Read the GMI 2025 ➡️ https://shorturl.at/PPqhJ

Adresse

Pfarrer-Byns-Straße 1
Bonn
53121

Telefon

+49228911960

Webseite

http://bicc.de/

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