Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project

The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED) is a project that collates data on political violence in developing states, from 1997 to the present. As of early 2015, ACLED has recorded over 90,000 individual events, with ongoing data collection focused on Africa. Data on South and South-East Asia are also available.[1]

Team and history

ACLED is directed by Prof. Clionadh Raleigh and operated by senior research manager Caitriona Dowd, both affiliated with the University of Sussex, while data collection involves several researchers.[1] The dataset was introduced by Raleigh and co-authors in a 2010 paper in the Journal of Peace Research.[2] ACLED was originally hosted by the Peace Research Institute Oslo (but was, even at the time, distinct from the UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict dataset) but later moved to an independent home.[3] ACLED is now registered as an independent, non-governmental organization in the United States.[1]

Data

ACLED data contain information on the specific dates and locations of conflict events, the types of events, the groups involved, reported fatalities and changes in territorial control. ACLED covers political violence in all African countries starting from 1997 to the present, and South and South-East Asia in real-time. Data for non-African states are also available for the period 1997-2010, with the exception of Pakistan and Afghanistan, for which "beta" data collections are available for 2006-2009.[1][4] Data collection involves a variety of sources including reports from developing countries and local media, humanitarian agencies, and research publications. A full account of definitions, practices, source materials and coding procedures are available in the Methodology section on ACLED website.[5]

Data are updated in real-time and can be downloaded from the website. ACLED provides a codebook intended for users of the dataset[6] and additional maps, trend charts and infographics that can be consulted in the Visuals section of the website.[7] Real-time analysis of political violence can be also found on ACLED Crisis Blog.[8] ACLED data are also available under the "Climate Change and African Political Stability" section of the website of the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the University of Texas at Austin.[1][9]

Uses and users of ACLED

Academic literature and practitioners

Over the past few years, several scholars have cited ACLED in their research on civil wars and political violence.[10] ACLED has also been referenced in a number of reports published by development practitioners and humanitarian agencies, including the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations country offices, the United States State Department and the United States military.

Blogs on political violence and data analysis

Political scientist, data analyst, and forecaster Jay Ulfelder blogged about his experience trying to use the ACLED to see if it added predictive power in estimating the probability of coups, and explained both how he approached the problem and why he eventually concluded that the ACLED data did not add predictive power for coup forecasting.[11] However, 23 successful and unsuccessful changes in power through coups have occurred across Africa since 1997. Recent research suggests that coup risk is related to the size and stability of a leader's cabinet, and not episodes of political violence preceding coups.[12] A post by Thomas Zeitzoff at the Political Violence at a Glance blog listed the ACLED as one of several "high-profile datasets."[13] Patrick Meier blogged about it at irevolution.net[14]

News media

ACLED has been referenced by several news agencies in their reporting on recent conflict trends. These include pieces in the New York Times,[15][16] The Guardian, the BBC[17] National Geographic,[18] The Economist,[19] and The Atlantic.[20]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "About ACLED". Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  2. ↑ Raleigh, Clionadh; Linke, Andrew; Hegre, Håvard; Karlsen, Joakim. "Introducing ACLED: An Armed Conflict Location and Event Dataset" (PDF). Journal of Peace Research. 47 (5): 1–10. doi:10.1177/0022343310378914.
  3. ↑ "ACLED - Armed Conflict Location and Event Data". Peace Research Institute Oslo. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Data". Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Methodology". Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  6. ↑ "ACLED Codebook 2014" (PDF). Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Visuals". Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  8. ↑ "ACLED Crisis Blog". Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  9. ↑ "CCAPS Armed Conflict in Africa Database (ACLED)". Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  10. ↑ ACLED. "A Review of Research Using ACLED in 2014". Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  11. ↑ Ulfelder, Jay (June 2, 2014). "Conflict Events, Coup Forecasts, and Data Prospecting". Dart-Throwing Chimp. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  12. ↑ Arriola, Leonardo R. (October 2009). "Patronage and Political Stability in Africa" (PDF). Comparative Political Studies. 42 (10): 1339–1362. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  13. ↑ Zeitzoff, Thomas (April 2, 2013). "Why IR and Conflict Research Need Micro-Foundations". Political Violence at a Glance. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  14. ↑ Meier, Patrick (June 8, 2009). "http://irevolution.net/2009/06/08/armed-conflict-and-location-event-dataset-acled/". iRevolution. Retrieved June 12, 2014. External link in |title= (help)
  15. ↑ Nossiter, Adam (May 18, 2014). "A Jihadist's Face Taunts Nigeria From the Shadows". New York Times. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  16. ↑ Ashkenas, Jeremy; Watkins, Derek; Tse, Archie. "Boko Haram: The Other Islamic State". The New York Times. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  17. ↑ "Boko Haram crisis: Cameroon repels army base raid". BBC. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  18. ↑ Verini, James (March 27, 2014). "Should the United Nations Wage War to Keep Peace? Last year the UN adopted Resolution 2098, allowing its troops to attack armed groups in Congo and leading to the defeat of the vicious M23 militia. The Security Council has voted to renew the resolution, but the battle for Africa's heartland is far from over.". National Geographic. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Daily Chart: Voting Violence". The Economist. July 30, 2013. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  20. ↑ Berg, Nate (September 13, 2012). "A Depressingly Crowded Map of Conflicts in Africa. A lot has happened in just a few years.". Retrieved June 12, 2014.

External links

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