Conflict-sensitive development in practice

Some well-meaning development programmes actually end up fuelling conflict. This case study shows how Saferworld helps development workers guard against this.

Like everyone, women living in Northern Uganda want to earn a living so that they can eat healthily and make sure their children have a good education.

“If the peace goes well, people will grow crops to sell and send their children to school…..if the peace comes and we can move home we shall collect shea nuts without fear, we shall dig without fear”

This simple wish, however, can prove extremely difficult when you live in an area where there has been civil war for over 20 years and when the remaining members of your family live in a camp for internally displaced people with poor water, sanitation and education facilities.

Despite these and other social problems, every day, a group of women from Otuke county in northern Uganda risk their lives to collect and sell on shea nuts from nearby fields, where armed rebels and cattle rustlers roam.

The women are supported by the Northern Uganda Shea Nut Project (NUSP), a development programme funded by the Swedish Government, who were keen to find out what impact this project had on the conflict in the area and whether it could help to promote peace there.

To find out, Saferworld and local partner, Center for Conflict Resolution (CECORE), were asked to undertake a conflict analysis of the area and see how the project could be made more conflict-sensitive - that is to make sure it did not fuel existing tensions but had a positive impact towards establishing peace.

"Conflict has lasted 20 years.  Our children have been killed and abducted, our houses burned, properties looted...children with diseases, and we are left suffering in the camps..."

Amongst other research, meetings with the women were an essential element of the research allowing them to relay their experiences and voice their opinions on safety and security issues. A retired police woman from Otuke then spent some time with the women discussing sensitive issues like sexual violence and what they could do to protect themselves better.

A training workshop was also held for staff running the project so that they could find out more about what conflict-sensitivity is and how they could become more conflict-sensitive in their project work.

Overall the assessment showed that the NUSP is having a small but generally positive impact in the district. However, one of the key issues to emerge was that ensuring the safety of the women was crucial to the project. The assessment also found that women's associations can help peace and recovery from the conflict.

Find out more about the process of conducting the conflict analysis and its findings in the report, The Experience of the Northern Uganda Shea Nut Project

 

 

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Read more case studies about other areas of our work.

• Small arms and light weapons
• Arms transfer controls
• Conflict-sensitive development
  • Conflict-sensitive development tools
• Security and justice sector development
• International advocacy
• Training