How can conflict-sensitive approaches (CSA) enhance development? This report from Saferworld documents how two water development projects in Uganda became more conflict-sensitive and, as a result, benefited recipient communities. CSA can deepen beneficiary participation and community ownership of development projects. More practical work is needed on implementing CSA within different sectors, and on understanding how best to adapt conflict-sensitive development to different levels and types of conflict.
Promoting development is a complex, inherently political process involving many different players and new resources, which impact on community power relations and can inadvertently contribute to divisions or fuel violence – particularly in environments already affected by conflict. Access to water can be contentious and can feed into other conflict dynamics, such as disputes over land or grazing.
Conflict-sensitive approaches (CSA) to development aim to promote more thorough thinking on the intended and unintended impact of development interventions on conflict dynamics in beneficiary societies. Conflict sensitivity starts with a thorough conflict analysis and attempts to strengthen factors promoting cohesion and the non-violent management of conflict and to avoid strengthening drivers of conflict.
Conflict-sensitive approaches enhanced the impact of two Ugandan water projects in Kasese district and in Arua district. The process involved district-based civil society organisations accompanying local government authorities in the installation of two different types of water provision – a gravity flow scheme and a water borehole. It also included capacity building on conflict sensitivity within civil society and in civil society/district policy dialogue.
- Taking a conflict-sensitive approach to the gravity flow scheme in Kasese district resulted in a revision of initial plans after the local NGO partner (REDROC), the District Water Office (DWO) and the beneficiary communities worked together to identify existing divisions and how the water scheme could help reduce these.
- In Arua, this approach helped to solve issues relating to land ownership and the borehole location and maintenance by working through the issues with the local NGO partner (YODEO), the communities and the DWO.
- Conflict sensitivity can address different types of conflict causes. For example, it helped prevent triggers of violence in Kasese by enlarging the scheme and approving a second one to serve all Mahango and Rukoki residents. It also helped to tackle proximate/accelerating causes of conflict by stopping the politicisation of the gravity flow scheme in Kasese, and helped address structural causes of conflict by improving the relationship between Nyai community in Arua and the district local government through accountable and participatory service delivery.
- District officials felt that the quality of beneficiary participation was increased and that a conflict-sensitive approach helped them identify and solve problems proactively. The relationship between beneficiaries and those responsible for services became more consultative and transparent and increased the number of feedback mechanisms.
- Beneficiaries were able to discuss issues dividing them and agree on ways in which the water projects could benefit everybody.
Capacity building for conflict sensitivity needs to involve local government staff and private sector actors as well as civil society. It should include leaders within civil society organisations who can promote change and increase the institutional capacity of civil society. Other lessons arising from the case studies include the following:
- Conflict-sensitive approaches must be adapted to different actors and levels of working.
- Conflict analysis should be carefully timed to ensure it feeds into project design, implementation and monitoring.
- Funding time-frames for different aspects of CSA should be coordinated to ensure sustainability.
- While implementing projects in a conflict-sensitive way may in some situations increase financial costs, efficiency savings and improved effectiveness are likely.
