Roadblocks and revenues: The politics of passage

From Afghanistan and Yemen to Mali and Somalia, checkpoints play a central role in armed conflicts. They fund insurgents, fuel violence, and shape governance by various armed actors, both state and non-state. Despite their importance, checkpoints are often overlooked in discussions about what drives conflict and how we can understand order in areas with contested statehood.

To address this gap, a new working paper series on Roadblocks and Revenues has been launched. This series sheds light on checkpoints in conflict contexts around the world, providing a fresh perspective on dynamics of authority and power.

The series is a joint effort between DIIS, the International Centre for Tax and Development, and the Centre on Armed Groups. It was made possible by a partnership between these organizations and a series of workshops held in Copenhagen (2023) and Caux (2024). These workshops brought together an international community of scholars who share a common interest in checkpoints in conflict.

The first paper in the series introduces the concept of the “politics of passage.” This refers to the struggles over movement and authority that occur at roadblocks in fragile and conflict-affected settings. The authors explore the historicity of circulation struggles in relation to state formation and offer a new research agenda on roadblocks, drawing from existing research and suggesting avenues for future work.

The working paper series is generously funded by the Carlsberg Foundation under the Semper Ardens: Accelerate grant ‘TRADECRAFT’. To learn more about the project, visit the project website.