Three full PhD scholarships available at University of Ghana

University of Ghana, Institute of African Studies & Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre

3 PhD Scholarships Available – Call for Applications

Security Implications of United Nations Peacekeeping in Ghana

Advance theoretical, research-based and policy-applicable knowledge on the domestic security implications of Ghana’s contributions to UN peacekeeping

University of Ghana, Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS), and Danish Institute Against Torture (DIGNITY) are undertaking a collaborative research project on the Domestic Security Implications of United Nations Peacekeeping (D-SIP) in Ghana. D-SIP’s objective is to understand the linkages between peacekeeping contributions, domestic security provision and drivers of stability in Ghana. By producing knowledge on how participation in international peacekeeping shapes the legitimacy and effectiveness of security institutions and practices in troop contributing countries, D-SIP offers insight into broader dynamics of peace and state-building. 

  

Since the early 2000s, UN peacekeeping has increased in scope and complexity. The global spend in 2016 was $7.87 billion with 118,792 personnel deployed to 16 operations. The sustainability of UN operations depends on countries from the global South that constitute the top ten troop contributors. Their motivations to provide peacekeepers are economic, political, institutional and normative. However, knowledge is lacking on how peacekeeping participation impact on domestic security and stability in troop contributing countries, both at national and local levels.

   

Ghana is a privileged space to explore this issue in. The country has been engaged in more than 30 UN peacekeeping operations since the 1960s and is among the world’s largest troop contributors. Despite changing governments and regimes, Ghana has been committed to contribute to international peacekeeping, and continues to play a vital role as a peacekeeping pioneer. It is a country characterized by rapid economic growth and democratic consolidation – a stable country in an unstable region faced with long-term and emerging security threats, including the effects of refugee flows and insurgent groups. Ghana’s sustained contribution to peacekeeping missions and conflict prevention depends on maintaining this status. Therefore, Ghana provides insight into linkages between contributing peacekeepers, building legitimate security institutions, and drivers of national and regional stability. 

   

D-SIP calls for PhD applications that explore how the exposure to international peacekeeping training and deployments abroad impacts on discourses and practices of security within Ghana. The empirical focus is on the national level as well as local level in two urban localities – Accra and Tamale – as well as rural Ghana. D-SIP applies a multidisciplinary approach with an emphasis on ethnographic fieldwork methods. Overall, the aim is to show how the global is productive of the local, and how institutions, actors, practices, norms and discourse mix to produce novel forms of security governance and global-local linkages.

   

As part of the D-SIP programme, the University of Ghana invites interested and qualified citizens of Ghana, holding MPhil/MA/MSc/LLM degrees in law, social or political sciences, to submit their applications for 3 PhD positions. The successful candidates will be enrolled at the Institute of African Studies at the University of Ghana and receive a PhD in African Studies with a specialisation in security and peacekeeping. They will be supervised by a joint team of D-SIP researchers from the University of Ghana, KAIPTC, DIIS and DIGNITY. 

   

The candidates will spend their experiential learning attachments at DIIS and KAIPTC, including study stays and thesis writing time at both institutions, in Accra and Copenhagen, respectively. The candidates will be fully integrated members of the D-SIP research team. The successful candidates will receive a stipend throughout the 4-year period of their studies, and all costs for fieldwork, PhD training-related travel, and conferences abroad will be covered by D-SIP.

   

The positions are for four (4) years full-time and will commence on 1 February 2019 or as soon as possible thereafter. While undertaking qualitative fieldwork in Accra, Tamale and/or another location in rural or urban Ghana, the three successful PhD candidates will each adopt a specific thematic focus, for example: 

   

The candidates are expected to conduct up to 8 months of ethnographic fieldwork, and to participate in teaching at the University of Ghana. 

   

The successful PhD candidates will contribute to the overall research objective of identifying the domestic security implications of UN peacekeeping contributions in Ghana.

   

D-SIP is funded by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

   

Successful candidates are required to:

   

Potential applicants are invited to prepare a 4-5-page concept note (maximum 2,000 words) which, with reference to the selected PhD focus (please select from above), outlines a detailed focus for the proposed PhD project as well as research assumptions and questions. Applicants, who wish to apply for the PhrD position under two or more thematic areas, should develop a separate concept note for each of the focus areas. The following details must be included in the concept note: 

Please make sure to clearly indicate which of the PhD positions you apply for. 

   

In addition to this concept note, the application should be accompanied by a CV, including a list of publications as well as names and contact details of a 2-3 academic references. 

   

The application should be submitted online to Dr Richard Asante via rasante@ug.edu.gh and richasagh@yahoo.com, with copy to Dr Kwesi Aning (kwesianing2002@yahoo.com), Professor Dzodzi Tsikata (dtsikata@ug.edu.gh), Dr Peter Albrecht (paa@diis.dk), and Professor Raymond Atuguba (atugubaatuguba@yahoo.com). All five can be contacted for more information on D-SIP.

The applications will be evaluated by an assessment committee consisting of researchers from University of Ghana, KAIPTC, DIIS and DIGNITY. All candidates will be notified. Interviews with shortlisted candidates will be conducted by the assessment committee at the University of Ghana between 5 and 6 November 2018. The final selection will be undertaken soon thereafter.