Comfort Ero

Last updated
Comfort Ekhuase Ero
Comfort Ero on Crisis Group's Mission.jpg
Ero in 2022
Alma mater London School of Economics
Scientific career
Institutions International Crisis Group
King's College London
Thesis The evolution of norms in international relations : intervention and the principle of non-intervention in intra-African affairs  (1999)

Comfort Ekhuase Ero is an analyst, policymaker and the President of the think-tank International Crisis Group. Her research has focussed on peacekeeping and international relations in conflict-ridden countries. Alongside her work in international diplomacy, Ero is committed to making peace-building more representative and inclusive. She was awarded the 2023 Sir Brian Urquhart Award for Distinguished Service to the UN.

Contents

Early life and education

Ero was born in England to Nigerian parents. [1] After completing their university degrees in the United Kingdom, Ero's parents could not return to Nigeria because of the Biafra Civil War. [1] Ero moved to Lagos when she was two years old, where she lived until primary school. [1] She lived with her uncle on the campus of the University of Lagos. [1] She has credited her father and uncle with her decision to pursue an academic career. [2] Ero earned her doctorate at the London School of Economics, where she studied interventions in intra-African affairs. [3] Specifically she focussed on the post-colonial states that emerged in 1957, and how international relations evolved during independence and the Cold war. She found that interventionist and non-interventionist practise represented a balance between dealing with short term contingencies and long term security. [3] During her doctorate she completed an internship at the United Nations Association – UK, which inspired her to work in policymaking and international diplomacy. [2] After earning her doctorate she moved to King's College London as a research associate in the Conflict, Security and Development Group, which was supported by the Department for International Development. She moved to the International Institute for Strategic Studies in 1998. [4] She was a researcher in Freetown during the Sierra Leone Civil War. [5]

Career

Ero joined Crisis Group as West Africa Project Director in 2001. [6] She moved to the United Nations in 2004, where she spent 3 years as special representative to the Secretary-General in Liberia. The United Nations Mission in Liberia helped Liberia recover in the aftermath of the decade-long civil war and implement their peace agreement. [7] Here she explored the challenges multilateral agencies face when creating policy. In 2008 she moved to the International Center for Transitional Justice, where she was responsible for the Africa Program.

Ero joined the advisory board of the Royal United Services Institute in 2020. [8] In 2021 she returned to Crisis Group as the Interim Vice President. She was made President and CEO in December 2021. [9] [10] She was the first ever Black woman to lead the organisation. [1] Crisis group conduct field research, analysis and advocacy to help policymakers prevent and resolve conflict. [7]

Ero was awarded the Sir Brian Urquhart Award for Distinguished Service to the United Nations in 2023. [7]

Select publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liberia</span> Country in West Africa

Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and southwest. It has a population of around 5 million and covers an area of 43,000 square miles (111,369 km2). The country's official language is English; however, over 20 indigenous languages are spoken, reflecting the country's ethnic and cultural diversity. The capital and largest city is Monrovia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces</span> Combined armed forces of Sierra Leone

The Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces are the armed forces of Sierra Leone, responsible for the territorial security of Sierra Leone's borders and defending the national interests of Sierra Leone, within the framework of the 1991 Sierra Leone Constitution and International laws. The armed forces were formed after independence in 1961, on the basis of elements of the former British Royal West African Frontier Force, then present in the Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blood diamond</span> Diamonds mined in a war zone and sold to finance conflict

Blood diamonds are diamonds mined in a war zone and sold to finance an insurgency, an invading army's war efforts, terrorism, or a warlord's activity. The term is used to highlight the negative consequences of the diamond trade in certain areas, or to label an individual diamond as having come from such an area. Diamonds mined during the 20th–21st century civil wars in Angola, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau have been given the label. The term conflict resource refers to analogous situations involving other natural resources. Blood diamonds can also be smuggled by organized crime syndicates so that they could be sold on the black market.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Taylor (Liberian politician)</span> President of Liberia from 1997 to 2003

Charles McArthur Ghankay Taylor is a Liberian former politician and convicted war criminal who served as the 22nd president of Liberia from 2 August 1997 until his resignation on 11 August 2003 as a result of the Second Liberian Civil War and growing international pressure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revolutionary United Front</span> Rebel army and political party in Sierra Leone

The Revolutionary United Front (RUF) was a rebel group that fought a failed eleven-year war in Sierra Leone, beginning in 1991 and ending in 2002. It later transformed into a political party, which still exists today. The three most senior surviving leaders, Issa Sesay, Morris Kallon and Augustine Gbao, were convicted in February 2009 of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnny Paul Koroma</span> Military dictator of Sierra Leone from May 1997 to February 1998

Major Johnny Paul Koroma was a Sierra Leonean military officer who was the head of state of Sierra Leone from May 1997 to February 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Liberian Civil War</span> 1989–1997 civil war in Liberia

The First Liberian Civil War was the first in a series of two civil wars within the West African nation of Liberia. It lasted from 1989 to 1997. President Samuel Doe established a regime in 1980 but totalitarianism and corruption led to unpopularity and the withdrawal of support from the United States by the late 1980s. The National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) led by Charles Taylor invaded Liberia from the Ivory Coast to overthrow Doe in December 1989 and gained control over most of the country within a year. Doe was captured and executed by the Independent National Patriotic Front of Liberia (INPFL), a splinter faction of the NPFL led by Prince Johnson, in September 1990. The NPFL and INPFL fought each other for control of the capital city, Monrovia and against the Armed Forces of Liberia and pro-Doe United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy. Peace negotiations and foreign involvement led to a ceasefire in 1995 but fighting continued until a peace agreement between the main factions occurred in August 1996. Taylor was elected President of Liberia following the 1997 Liberian general election and entered office in August of the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group</span> West African multilateral armed force

The Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) was a West African multilateral armed force established by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). ECOMOG was a formal arrangement for separate armies to work together. It was largely supported by personnel and resources of the Nigerian Armed Forces, with sub-battalion strength units contributed by other ECOWAS members — Ghana, Guinea, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, Liberia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, and others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Second Liberian Civil War</span> 1999–2003 civil war in Liberia

The Second Liberian Civil War was a civil war in the West African nation of Liberia that lasted from 1999 to 2003.

The Sierra Leone Civil War (1991–2002), or the Sierra Leonean Civil War, was a civil war in Sierra Leone that began on 23 March 1991 when the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), with support from the special forces of Liberian dictator Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL), intervened in Sierra Leone in an attempt to overthrow the Joseph Momoh government. The resulting civil war lasted 11 years, enveloping the country. It left over 50,000 dead.

The National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) was a Liberian rebel group that initiated and participated in the First Liberian Civil War from 24 December 1989 – 2 August 1997. The NPFL emerged out of rising ethnic tensions and civil unrest due to the Liberian government that was characterized by totalitarianism, corruption, and favoritism towards ethnic Krahns. The NPFL invaded Liberia through Ivory Coast’s border with Nimba County in Liberia under the direction of Charles Taylor, a former Liberian politician and guerrilla leader who served as the 22nd president of Liberia from 2 August 1997 until his resignation on 11 August 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zainab Bangura</span> Sierra Leonean politician and activist

Haja Zainab Hawa Bangura is a Sierra Leonean politician and social activist who has been serving as the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) since 2018, appointed by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres. She served as the second United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict with the rank of Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations from 2012 to 2017, in succession to the first holder of the post, Margot Wallström. In 2017 she was succeeded by Pramila Patten.

A new civil war began in 1999 when a rebel group backed by the government of neighboring Guinea, the Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), emerged in northern Liberia. By the spring of 2001, they were posing a major threat to the Taylor government. Liberia was now engaged in a complex three-way conflict with Sierra Leone and the Guinea Republic. By the beginning of 2002, both of these countries were supporting the latest addition to the lexicon of Liberian guerrilla outfits – Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), while Taylor was supporting various opposition factions in both countries. By supporting Sierra Leonean rebels, Taylor also drew the enmity of the British and Americans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liberia–United States relations</span> Bilateral relations

Liberia – United States relations are bilateral relations between Liberia and the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace</span>

Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace is a peace movement started in 2003 by women in Monrovia, Liberia, Africa, that worked to end the Second Liberian Civil War. Organized by Crystal Roh Gawding and social workers Leymah Gbowee and Comfort Freeman, the movement began despite Liberia having extremely limited civil rights. Thousands of Muslim and Christian women from various classes mobilized their efforts, staged silent nonviolence protests that included a sex strike and the threat of a curse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 1343</span> United Nations resolution adopted in 2001

United Nations Security Council resolution 1343, adopted unanimously on 7 March 2001, after recalling resolutions on Sierra Leone and the region, including resolutions 1132 (1997), 1171 (1998) and 1306 (2000), the Council demanded that Liberia end its support for rebels in Sierra Leone and threatened the imposition of wide-ranging sanctions unless the country complied with the Security Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 1436</span> United Nations resolution adopted in 2002

United Nations Security Council resolution 1436, adopted unanimously on 24 September 2002, after recalling all previous resolutions on the situation in Sierra Leone, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) for a further six months beginning on 30 September 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 1497</span> United Nations resolution adopted in 2003

United Nations Security Council resolution 1497, adopted on 1 August 2003, after expressing concern at the situation in Liberia, the Council authorised a multinational force to intervene in the civil war to support the implementation of a ceasefire agreement using "all necessary measures".

The United Kingdom began a military intervention in Sierra Leone on 7 May 2000 under the codename Operation Palliser. Although small numbers of British personnel had been deployed previously, Palliser was the first large-scale intervention by British forces in the Sierra Leone Civil War. In early May 2000, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF)—one of the main parties to the civil war—advanced on the country's capital, Freetown, prompting the British government to dispatch an "Operational Reconnaissance and Liaison Team" (ORLT) to prepare to evacuate foreign citizens. On 6 May, the RUF blocked the road connecting Freetown to the country's main airport, Lungi. The next day, British soldiers began to secure the airport and other areas essential to an evacuation. The majority of those who wished to leave were evacuated within the first two days of the operation, but many chose to stay following the arrival of British forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenya–Sierra Leone relations</span> Bilateral relations

Kenya–Sierra Leone relations are bilateral relations between Kenya and Sierra Leone.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Banjo, Damilola (2022-04-03). "Meet Comfort Ero, the First Black Woman to Lead the International Crisis Group". PassBlue. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  2. 1 2 "From a PhD in IR at LSE to the top of a think tank". LSE Department of International Relations. 2022-05-31. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  3. 1 2 Ero, Comfort Ekhuase (1999). The evolution of norms in international relations: Intervention and the principle of non-intervention in intra-African affairs (phd thesis). London School of Economics and Political Science.
  4. ↑ "Comfort Ero President & CEO Crisis Group". Values Exchange. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  5. ↑ "Africa Aware: Reflections on Sierra Leone's peace process". 2023-07-05.
  6. ↑ "Comfort Ero". Global Initiative. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  7. 1 2 3 "Comfort Ero's Acceptance Speech at UNA-UK, United Nations Day Reception". www.crisisgroup.org. 2023-10-24. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  8. ↑ "Dr Comfort Ero, Shashank Joshi and Matthew Kirk join RUSI's Advisory Board". rusi.orghttps. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  9. ↑ "Comfort Ero". www.crisisgroup.org. 2016-07-04. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  10. ↑ "Leading: Dr Comfort Ero: Resolving deadly conflicts & reforming the UN on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.