Lovise Aalen Author

Lovise Aalen is a Political Scientist and Research Director at Chr. Michelsen Institute. Her research interests include institutional solutions in divided societies, including power sharing, federalism, and decentralisation. She has explored the impact of introducing ethnic federalism in Ethiopia, and has demonstrated how ethnic-based federalism was an important tool for the ruling party to gain legitimacy, control, and support across ethnic groups, thereby sustaining the national government rather than deepening democracy.

Ragnhild L. Muriaas is Professor in Political Science at the University of Bergen and an Associated Senior Researcher at Chr. Michelsen Institute. Her key research interest is explaining variation in the inclusionary aspects of African regimes. She has led international research projects and published extensively on topics related to political decentralisation, traditional authorities, and women’s representation in Malawi, Uganda, South Africa, and Zambia.