Attachments
Authors
Sarah Cliffe. Executive Director
Renata Dwan, Senior Consulting Fellow, Chatham House; Senior Fellow, NYU CIC
Betty Wainaina, Associate Director, UN/IFIs
Leah Zamore. Associate Director, Humanitarian Policy
Over the past two decades, fragile and conflict-affected states (FCS) have become a policy priority for international development actors.
The global and human consequences of fragility have encouraged new multilateral and national approaches and instruments, focused on upstream prevention; building institutions; generating security, justice and jobs; fostering inclusive national ownership; and strengthening international coordination.
However, in a growing subset of FCS, these principles and practices cannot be applied. More than 49 percent of people in FCS now live in situations where relations between major donors and national authorities are ‘politically estranged.” Such situations are no longer the exception. Many affected states are at the forefront of growing geopolitical contestation and fragmentation, as global and regional powers vie for influence and access to resources, especially in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A range of options exists for donors to remain engaged without ignoring the sources of estrangement. ‘Business as usual’ after coups or large-scale human rights abuses is not an option either for international organizations striving to support constitutional norms and donors committed to aid effectiveness. Proven approaches and modalities can help donors to deliver aid without legitimizing unlawful regimes, fuelling further conflict and human rights abuses or ignoring corruption risks. With some important exceptions, these modalities have not been systematically considered. The reasons for this are both political and practical.
A new approach is required. NYU’s Center on International Cooperation (CIC) and Chatham House undertook a joint study to examine the political and practical barriers to staying engaged in politically estranged situations and propose options for donors and multilateral actors to use in overcoming those barriers. The resulting research paper draws together quantitative analysis, donor interviews and diverse examples from countries where relations between donors and national authorities are or have been estranged. It identifies emerging best practice and strategic shifts in donor approaches to help to reflect this new reality.
Full research report forthcoming on 3 April 2023