Changelog
data versions & site milestonesASEO is updated on an annual cycle, within one quarter of SIPRI's spring data release. Every release is validated before it ships; changes are recorded here.
Site 1.5 — regions, glossary and scholarly packaging
A new Regions page profiles each UN sub-region from the same panel — deliveries over time, leading recipients, supplier blocs and embargoes in force — beneath a stacked five-region view of the continental market, with every regional card on the overview now linking through. A trilingual glossary defines every measure and source behind the Observatory, and the methodology FAQ doubles to eight questions covering licensing, citation, update cadence and the status of the outlook scenarios. Scholarly packaging deepens: FAQ and glossary structured data, breadcrumbs on every section, and a copy-link button on every chart for citable deep links. A full trilingual visual audit of every chart also localized the last untranslated legends, tooltips and number formats.
Site 1.4 — analytical deepening
Four additions drawn from validated layers the site had not yet surfaced: the EMEI sensitivity band now appears on the engagement ranking and recipient profiles; the supplier-concentration index (HHI) joins recipient profiles, the dependency chart and country drawers; a new foreign-military-presence timeline documents the build-up to the 2020 peak and the post-2021 Sahel withdrawals; and the outlook page gains an observed order-book chart — orders versus deliveries by era — as a leading indicator beneath the scenarios. A second wave the same week: flagship weapon systems (verbatim SIPRI designations) on every supplier and recipient profile, a deliveries-by-regime-type chart, year-by-year animation for the map's US$ metric, UCDP battle deaths as a second line in recipient conflict charts, a resource-rents lens on the engagement page, and V-Dem polyarchy scores in the country drawers.
Site 1.3 — French edition
The Observatory becomes trilingual: a complete French edition of every page, reached through the header language selector, which now offers EN, TR and FR while preserving the exact view being read. All charts, maps, tables, profile narratives and the embargo register are translated. Suggested citations across the site — profile citations, chart-image credits and BibTeX — now carry the dataset DOI.
Site 1.2 — Turkish edition
The Observatory becomes fully bilingual: a complete Turkish edition of every page, reached through a language switch in the header that preserves the exact view being read (including selected profiles). All charts, maps, tables, profile narratives and the embargo register are translated, with Turkish number formatting throughout. Also added: a remembered language preference with a polite first-visit suggestion, per-profile suggested citations with one-click copy, and a bilingual "page not found" screen.
Site 1.1 — profile restructure
Recipients and Suppliers rebuilt as two mirrored profile pages — any of the 54 states and any of the 15 leading suppliers now has a full selectable profile with narrative, comparison mode and shareable links — with the aggregate views folded beneath each. Also added: the regional lens, year-by-year map animation, per-chart image download, print fact sheets, a full methodology page, and cross-links between recipient and supplier profiles.
Site 1.0 — public launch
The observatory goes public: interactive continental map with year-by-year animation, supplier profiles with head-to-head comparison, recipient drawers for all 54 states, an outlook page with selectable scenarios, and a full methodology. The site is self-contained — no third-party requests — and every figure derives from the validated v1.0 database.
Data v1.0 — first complete build
Seven data layers assembled and validated for all 54 African states, 2000–2025: 5,293 arms-transfer records (SIPRI), 925 defence-cooperation dyad-years, 18 major foreign installations, 15 UN/EU embargo regimes, and conflict, governance and economic context. Four-layer validation passed with zero failures; totals cross-checked against SIPRI's published aggregates.
Next scheduled update: Data v1.1, after the 2027 SIPRI Arms Transfers release.