Call for Papers: The Extractive Industries and Post-conflict Reconstruction in Developing Countries

Mar 31, 2014 | The Extractive Industries and Society (Elsevier Journals)

Since the 1990s, scholarship and policy have drawn considerable attention to the economic dimensions of contemporary armed conflicts.  Recent interest in the ‘resource curse’ has spawned extensive debate among researchers and policymakers, particularly around how the ‘materiality’ of some natural resources tends to be more prone to fuelling conflict.  Indeed, the notion that the developing world’s ‘lootable economies’ – countries containing pockets of lucrative, easily-accessible mineral wealth, such as gemstones and diamonds – may be more susceptible to civil violence has gained increasing currency. 

However, while the exploitation of high-value natural resources has frequently been cited as a key factor in triggering, escalating and/or prolonging conflicts in the developing world, comparatively little scholarly attention has been paid to the potential for natural resources to facilitate reconstruction and rehabilitation in countries decimated by civil violence.  The way that natural resources are managed and governed in post-conflict environments can either fundamentally support or undermine peace-building and reconstruction objectives. 

This Special Issue of The Extractive Industries and Society aims to provide perspectives on the complex linkages between high-value natural resources and post-conflict societies in the developing world.  We seek contributions that critically reflect upon a range of key development issues surrounding the recent growth of the mining and oil and gas sectors in post-conflict countries.  Possible topics for reflection include the role that governance, institution building, transparency initiatives, corporate social responsibility, civil society engagement and/or community-driven development can play in post-conflict development strategies in resource-rich countries.  We are particularly interested in pieces that reflect upon how best to integrate natural resource considerations into reconstruction plans and peace-building strategies.  Contributions are being solicited from across a wide-range of academic disciplines (e.g. geography, political ecology and political economy) and practitioners. 

All papers will be double-blinded refereed.  Prospective authors are encouraged, in the first instance, to forward an abstract to the editor, Dr Roy Maconachie, Department of Social and Policy Sciences, University of Bath, R.Maconachie@Bath.ac.uk.  The deadline for submissions is 31 August 2014.