Policy Papers - April 19, 2012

New Report: Aid Effectiveness in Fragile States

The policy report draws lessons-learned for the UN and others from the first generation of transition compacts in support of postconflict peacebuilding, focusing on case studies from Afghanistan, the DRC, Iraq, Liberia, and Timor-Leste. 

Policy Papers - February 22, 2012

New IPI Report: UN Mediation after Constitutional Crises

While the United Nations has extensive experience in helping to mediate the end to civil wars and implement peace agreements, its experience with non-civil-war transition crises is comparatively limited. This study examines the UN experience in five cases of unconstitutional changes in government between 2008-2011: Kenya, Mauritania, Guinea, Madagascar, and Kyrgyzstan.  

Policy Papers - February 16, 2012

Security-Sector Reform: Nine Ways to Move from Policy to Implementation

Security sector reform (SSR) remains a relatively new and evolving concept, one that brings together practitioners and academics from many different backgrounds. The application of SSR differs from one context to the other, each with its own complications.  

Policy Papers - November 23, 2011

New IPI Publication: What Army for Haiti?

President Michel Martelly of Haiti was widely expected to announce the creation of a new Haitian army on November 18, 2011. Instead, the newly-elected president called for the creation of a civilian-led commission that will have forty days to finalize a plan for the army, which was disbanded in 1995.  

Meeting Notes - November 17, 2011

New IPI Meeting Note: Elections and Stability in West Africa

This meeting note summarizes the discussions at a conference organized by the United Nations Office for West Africa (UNOWA) in Praia, Cape Verde on May 18-20, 2011. The conference addressed the need for a sustained effort to strengthen electoral processes in West Africa as a means to consolidate peace and democracy in the region.  

Meeting Notes - September 23, 2011

New Meeting Note: Upcoming Elections in Africa

Elections have facilitated the emergence of democratic governments in Africa, and, in some cases, more stable societies have emerged. In some other cases, however, elections have been manipulated to legitimize autocratic regimes or to ensure dynastic successions on the continent.  

Meeting Notes - May 23, 2011

The Future of South Sudan

While this is an exciting period for the people of South Sudan, the future presents them (and their neighbors in the North) with many difficult challenges. The status of Abyei and postreferendum issues between North and South—such as citizenship, oil sharing, border demarcation, currency, and debts, among others—are yet to be resolved.  

Meeting Notes - April 15, 2011

Refugees and the Dynamics of Peacebuilding

The mass arrival and prolonged presence of refugees in neighboring countries can have a negative impact on peace. Yet the issue of refugees has entered very little into contemporary discussions of peacebuilding.  

Policy Papers - October 27, 2010

The Sudan Referenda: What Role for International Actors?

On January 9, 2011, Sudan is scheduled to hold two referenda in accordance with the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which ended the twenty-two-year civil war between north and south. This issue brief highlights the main actors and challenges in the referenda preparations.  

Policy Papers - June 21, 2010

Assessing Local Context

The International Peace Institute (IPI) has undertaken a project called Understanding Local Context, which aims to enhance our understanding of how international actors grapple with local context and political dynamics in partner countries.