Department of Political

Science and International

Relations (PSIR)

POST-CONFLICT
PEACEBUILDING (PCPB)

LADY (YARTEY) AJAYI, PhD

adaina.yartey@cu.edu.ng
Department of Political
Science and International
Introduction
Relations (PSIR)

 Conflict is an integral aspect of human societies (Inter-states and

intrastate conflicts). Kosovo, Libya (2014), Nigerian civil war (1967-
1970), Sierra Leone (1991-2002), Sudan, South Sudan.
 Conflict has become so complicated that although the world war 11
has ended, conflicts have not.
 The world witnessed inter-state conflicts as well as an increased
number of intrastate conflicts since the end of the Cold War.
 Effects of conflicts are very enormous (Infrastructural destruction,
Breakdown of law and order, disruption of social life, loss of sources
of livelihood, increase in sexual violence, loss of family members,
institutional collapse etc).
 Humans are at the receiving end of conflict situations.
 Due to these, there was the need to map out strategies to strengthen
peace globally.
Department of Political
Science and International
Origin of “PCPB”
Relations (PSIR)

The ideas of peacebuilding, at their core, have been in existence for

centuries, arguably as early back as the first periods of 15th Century.
The term was created by Johan Galtung, a Norwegian sociologist in the
1970s. He wasn’t only interested in understanding the roots cause of
conflict, but also on ways to advocate for long term peace outcomes in these
conflict societies (Cheng-Hopkins, 2010).
 PCPB should address the root causes of conflict; support peace
management and conflict resolution.
 It was a bottom-up approach that decentralises social and economic
structures of coercion and violence to a culture of peace (structure are
important but much more is the need for the culture of peace to be
entrenched in all citizens).
 In the 1990s, the concept was used interchangeably with conflict
prevention, conflict management and post-conflict reconstruction.
 Boutros Boutros Ghali introduced the term to international lexicon in
1992 “action to solidify peace and avoid relapse into conflict” (Cheng-
Hopkins, 2010: 5).
Department of Political
Science and International
Relations (PSIR)

MEANING OF PEACEBUILDING (PB)

The definition of PB has remained largely difficult.
It has no generally acceptable definition.
This definitional deficiency can be addressed via
the use of approaches and time frame.
1. The Minimalist Approach: PB refers to the
aversion or prevention of a revisit or return to
violence (i.e conflict has already occurred).
It searches for indications of structural alterations
and changes of the economic, social and political
factors that lead to or cause conflict.
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

2. The Instrumentalist Approach: Identifies worthwhile short-

term changes underpinning peace, which can contribute to more
sustainable societal transformation in the long run
(Disarmament- reduction or withdrawal of military forces and
weapons).
Amnesty(Niger delta militants – granting official pardon to
persons convicted of political offences
3. Normative Approach: PCPB refers to the activities and
processes that focus on the root causes of conflict, rather than
the effects alone; supports the rebuilding and rehabilitation of
all sectors (economic, political infrastructure, justice) of the
war-torn society; encourages and supports interaction between
all sectors of society in order to repair damaged relations and
start the process of restoring dignity and trust;
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd
Relations (PSIR)

recognize the specifics of each post conflict

situation; encourage and support the
participation of indigenous resources in the
design, implementation and sustainment of
activities and processes; and promote
processes that will endure after the initial
emergency recovery phase has passed.
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

More Specific definitions include (Situated

within the 3 domains of approaches):
“Peacebuilding involves a range of measures
targeted to reduce the risk of lapsing or
relapsing into conflict by strengthening
national capacities at all levels for conflict
management, and to lay the foundations for
sustainable peace and sustainable
development” (UN Secretary-General’s Policy
Committee, 2007)– dwells more within the
Normative approach domain
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

These definitions from the stable of the

United Nations used peacebuilding and post
conflict peacebuilding interchangeably.
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

Approaches to Peacebuilding
 There are two broad approaches to peacebuilding.
 First, peacebuilding can refer to direct work that intentionally
focuses on addressing the factors driving or mitigating
conflict. When applying the term "peacebuilding" to this
work, there is an explicit attempt by those designing and
planning a peacebuilding effort to reduce structural or
direct violence.
 Second, the term peacebuilding can also refer to efforts to
coordinate a multi-level, multi-sectoral strategy, including
ensuring that there is funding and proper communication and
coordination mechanisms between humanitarian assistance,
development, governance, security, justice.
Department of Political
Science and International
Elements/fundamentals of PB
Relations (PSIR)

 Multi-sectoral coordination: PCPB encourages and supports

interaction between all sectors of society in order to repair
damaged relations and start the process of restoring dignity and
trust;
 Recognize the specifics of each post conflict situation (no one
method can be applied to all situations in the world);
 Participation of indigenous resources in the design,
implementation and sustainment of activities and processes;
 Processes must endure after the initial emergency recovery phase
has passed. (Disarmament, demobilisation, reintegration,
Rule of law, justice)
 A unique attribute of peace building is interdependence which
takes many divergent forms. i.e. It involves many actors (the
systems approach) – political leaders, leaders of fractions,
women, youth, children, regional institutions, global bodies
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

 PB efforts aim to manage, mitigate, resolve and transform

central aspects of the conflict through official diplomacy
as well as through civil society peace processes and
informal dialogue, negotiation, and mediation.
 PB addresses economic, social and political root causes of
violence and fosters reconciliation to prevent the return of
structural and direct violence.
 PB efforts aim to change beliefs, attitudes and behaviors to
transform the short and long term dynamics between
individuals and groups toward a more stable, peaceful
coexistence.
 Therefore, PB is an approach to an entire set of
interrelated efforts that support peace.
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

 Thus, central to the to all definitions is the agreement that

improving human security is the central task of peacebuilding.
 The interval between the first deployment of peacekeepers and
the beginning of peacebuilding is often referred to as the
Twilight Zone.
 Peacemaking involves stopping an ongoing conflict, whereas
peacebuilding happens before a conflict starts or once it ends.
 Peacekeeping prevents the resumption of fighting following a
conflict; it does not address the underlying causes of violence or
work to create societal change, as peacebuiding does.
 Peacekeeping also differs from peacebuilding in that it only
occurs after conflict ends, not before it begins.
Department of Political
Science and International
Relations (PSIR) for Peacebuilding
Frameworks

There are numerous regional and global organisations involved in peacebuilding

At the forefront of global PB efforts is the UN and its agencies
 The World Bank (WB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) focus on the
economic and financial aspects of peacebuilding.
 WB assists in post-conflict reconstruction and recovery by helping rebuild
society's socioeconomic framework.
 The IMF deals with post-conflict recovery and peacebuilding by acting to restore
assets and production levels.
 UN Peacebuilding Commissions (PBC): Founded in 2005 Intergovernmental
advisory body that brings together key actors, gathers resources, advises on
strategies for post-conflict peacebuilding and highlights issues that might
undermine peace.
 UN Peacebuilding Fund (PBF): Founded in 2006. supports peacebuilding
activities that directly promote post-conflict stabilization and strengthen state and
institutional capacity.
Department of Political
Science and International
Relations (PSIR)
Contd.
 UN Peacebuilding Support Office: Founded in 2005
 The New Partnership for Africa's development (NEPAD)
adopted a post-conflict Reconstruction Framework in 2005.
 AU also adopted a Post Conflict Reconstruction and
Development policy in 2006.
The essence of PBPB is basically political
 It involves the creation of a legitimate political authority that
can prevent the rebirth of violence.
 It comprises activities which exceed the political realm, like
development cooperation, humanitarian assistance, protection
of human rights and institutions of the state.
 It involves addressing both root causes (historical, socio-
economic and political) as well as the effects of conflict
(proliferation of weapons etc)
Department of Political
Dimensions/Phases/steps of PB
Science and International
Relations (PSIR)
Ist Dimension
Stabilisation phase (short term)
stability post-conflict and discourage
former combatants from returning to
war
It involves disarmament, demobilization
and reintegration (DDR)
Taking away weapons
Re-integrating former combatants into
civilian society
2nd Dimension
A Transitional phase (restoring state
institutions and building state capacity to
provide basic public goods and increase state
legitimacy)
It entails the processes involved in trying to
establish long term peace (restoring state
institutions)
Rebuilding basic facilities, transportation and
communication networks
Developing rule of law systems representative
government
Building educational and health infrastructure
Providing technical and capacity-building
assistance for institutions
Third Dimension
Consolidation phase: (solidifying peace)
Programs in the third dimension building a
post-conflict society's ability to manage
conflicts peacefully and promote
socioeconomic development
• Community dialogue (National
reconciliation) Rwanda, Libya, South
Africa
• Building bridges between different
communities
• Increasing human rights
• Gender empowerment
• Raising environmental awareness
Promoting economic development
(economic reconstruction)
Trauma counseling
Strengthening security
Developing a civil society and private sector
that can represent diverse interests and
challenge the state peacefully
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

The PB process ends when the host

society has developed the competence to
handle, control and sustain its own peace
process without supports from the external
context.
While different "indigenous" communities
utilize different conflict resolution
techniques, most of them share the common
characteristics described in the table.
Department of Political
Science and International
Relations (PSIR)
CHALLENGES LIMITING THE SUCCESS OF PCPB
 Decline of consensus between and among international actors
over what constitute threats to international peace and security.
 Excessive foreign interference and dominance of external
agencies.
 Refusal to address the root cause of conflict (the diversion of
funds).
 Lack of human resources: poor social development exposes
war torn countries to a risk of conflict reoccurrence.
 Discrepancy in what constitutes the top priority for the
international community and how to address them in the
Security Council, General Assembly and regional organisations.
 Clashes of interests and deep political division among political
actors.
 Lack of timeliness in providing responses and resources.
Department of Political
Science and International
Contd.
Relations (PSIR)

PB achieved success in Bosnia,

Herzegovina and El Salvador but failed in
some other places.