UNITED NATIONS, Sep 26 (IPS) – As world peace reaches its lowest point since World War II, International Day of Peace September 21 was a crucial moment to reflect on and strengthen our peacebuilding.
This year’s theme, ‘Cultivating a Culture of Peace’, is a powerful reminder that everyone must do their part to make peace possible.
This sentiment is central to UNDP’s conflict prevention and peacebuilding work, which we call an ‘area-based approach’. Under this model, we ensure that all those working for peace within a community work together and toward a common goal.
The work is tailored to the specific needs and circumstances of each particular community and is locally led. Peace is most likely to happen when communities come together to address the underlying causes of tension or conflict.
Conflicts are increasing
Today’s conflicts are driven by complex factors, including changing global power relations, weak governance, rising inequality and a range of interconnected threats such as climate change, crime and terrorism.
The toll of armed conflict is staggering. By the end of 2023, the number of deaths from conflict had risen dramatically. More than 117 million people are forcibly displacedViolence has costs the global economy an astonishing US$19.1 trillion. Two billion people, a quarter of the world’s population, live in conflict areas.
Without sufficient investment in peace, we cannot hope to reverse these trends. Yet international resources are increasingly focused on direct humanitarian aid rather than on the root causes of conflict.
The OECD estimates that humanitarian aid in fragile contexts has reached a historic high of 27.7 percent of Commission for Development Assistance official development assistance, while funding for peacebuilding has fallen to a 15-year low of 10.8 percent.
In response, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has developed a vision for building a more peaceful world, New Agenda for Peacecalls for greater international cooperation and a clear shift towards prioritising conflict prevention.
To effectively address the root causes of violence It emphasizes the importance of national ownership, people-centered strategies and peace financing. One way to deliver on the promise of the New Agenda for Peace is to adopt an area-based approach.
What is an area-based approach?
It delivers tailored recovery and development based on context and conflict analysis. It works with local authorities, community groups and local businesses to analyse and plan locally tailored solutions. In places such as Syria It ensures that responses are locally rooted and that communities are at the heart of the process.
Local communities, including vulnerable and excluded groups, determine the priorities of area-based approaches. This inclusive involvement creates a shared sense of purpose, which is the basis for building peace.
In Mozambique This has helped address local conflicts and promote resilience, including ensuring meaningful local participation in navigating deep-rooted social and political barriers.
In the south IraqUNDP uses an area-based approach to harmonize crisis response coordination, basic service delivery, livelihood opportunities and protection for at-risk groups. It addresses the multiple facets of recovery and resilience simultaneously, helping to build a foundation for lasting peace.
Area-based approaches also provide international organizations with a coordination framework to assess local needs and design cost-effective solutions.
UNDP’s work in Afghanistan coordinates efforts from international to local, increasing effectiveness and value for money, while supporting local ownership. This ensures that community members, especially disadvantaged groups, play a meaningful role in shaping their future.
With over 30 years of experience, UNDP has found that area-based approaches are highly effective in addressing some of the key barriers to peace, such as poverty, inequality and weak governance.
However, these approaches are not a panacea.
There are challenges in ensuring meaningful participation. These include coordinating diverse stakeholders, sustaining long-term impact, managing differing expectations, and overcoming capacity constraints. To be effective, peacebuilding programmes must be integrated into broader frameworks, such as national prevention strategies, strategic risk mitigation efforts, and international cooperation.
Despite their challenges, area-based approaches have great potential to prevent conflict, promote peace and build community resilience. We are already seeing the dividends in Mozambique, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and beyond.
Area-based approaches focus on people-centred solutions, encourage national ownership and address the root causes of conflict, thereby playing a crucial role in creating a culture of peace from below.
Naysan Adlparvar is a core government function and research advisor at the UNDP; Giacomo Negrotto is a local government specialist at UNDP; Adela Pozder-Cengic is a specialist in core government functions, UNDP
Source UN Development Programme
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© Inter Press Service (2024) — All rights reservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service