September 2014

Research this month

Security Sector Reform, local ownership and community engagement

State resilience, an effective security sector, and a sustainable peace are all, in large part, built upon the extent to which people can influence decisions that will shape their security and their futures.

Local ownership is widely regarded as being an essential component of successful Security Sector Reform (SSR). However in Security Sector Reform, local ownership and community engagement Eleanor Gordon argues that in practice local ownership is often sidelined. Her paper looks at why this is the case, and how improving local ownership can lead to better state resilience and more sustainable peace.

Back but not home: supporting the reintegration of former LRA abductees into civilian life in Congo and South Sudan

For small communities trying to cope with chronic insecurity, poverty and influxes of displaced people, making time for returnees falls low on the list of priorities. But in the long-term failing to reintegrate returnees fully into civilian life creates extra psychological and economic burdens, while the consequent family and social tensions undermine community cohesion and productivity

Back but not home, from Conciliation Resources, examines the experiences of former LRA abductees as they return to civilian life in DR Congo and South Sudan. The report looks at the difficulties they face reintegrating, and suggests that by making the process more locally-led and holistic, reintegration can be made easier.

Syrian women’s CSOs and service delivery

Evidence suggests that the uprising has contributed to a shift in perceptions around gender roles, which in the words of one respondent from Homs, has “set a precedent for the years to come in regards to women's roles in service and aid delivery.”

Syrian women’s CSOs and service delivery, from Integrity Research and Consultancy, maps the work of women's civil society organisations in Syria. The research finds that women's organisations are actively delivering services in many areas of Syria, including conflict areas. It also highlights the difficulties these organisations face, such as lack of capacity and restrictions on movement.

Getting coherence and coordination right: principles for the peacebuilding policy community

Coherence must be assessed and driven by local actors themselves or else peacebuilding efforts will not be effective, in large part because it is local actors who have a more robust understanding of prevailing political situations and therefore know how to prioritise issues.

Getting coherence and coordination right, from ACCORD, looks at whether better coherence and coordination between different peacebuilding approaches and actors can make peacebuilding overall more effective. The paper examines what coherence and coordination mean in a peacebuilding context, the challenges the concept faces, and recommended principles for best practice.

Information in the midst of crisis

Listeners reported being significantly more informed and demonstrated positive changes in behaviour. For example, female respondents who were frequent listeners reported feeling better informed about protecting themselves while away from the compound than occasional listeners.

Information in the midst of crisis, from Internews, shares the work of an Internews project providing information to IDPs in South Sudan. The project demonstrates how providing basic information can dramatically improve the lives of IDPs by helping them access basic services.

African Journal on Conflict Resolution, Vol 14. Issue 1

The most recent issue of the African Journal of Conflict Resolution includes articles on dispute resolution mechanisms in Ethiopia, young peoples' perceptions of violence and conflict in east DR Congo, and the Nigerian state's response to the emergence of Boko Haram.