Peacebuilding and Extractives in Fragile and Conflict-Affected States
Publisher: Institute of Development Studies
Author(s): Brigitte Rohwerder
Date: 2020
Topics: Basic Services, Extractive Resources
Despite often being a conflict risk, natural resource extraction can offer potential peacebuilding and development opportunities if managed effectively.The end of conflict can offer a window of opportunity to reform natural resource management systems.A number of different approaches and initiatives to natural resource management in fragile and conflict affected states exist, initiated and implemented by a variety of different actors including extractive companies, national governments, international organisations, and civil society. It is very important that they are context specific (following an assessment of conflict dynamics, the resource base, and existing governance structures around extractive industries) and involve the affected stakeholders in the design process to create domestic ownership. Transparent, accountable, inclusive, and equitable exploitation and trade of high value resources seems to be most likely to foster stability. However, there is no single way to manage natural resource extraction in these circumstances and those used have not necessarily yielded the desired results.Furthermore, there is a lack of clear and detailed evidence around the effectiveness of different options. This report focuses on non-renewable extractive resources such as minerals, oil and gas.