When Peacebuilding Meets the Plan: Natural Resource Governance and Post-Conflict Recovery
Publisher: Whitehead Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations
Author(s): Sandra S. Nichols, Päivi Lujala, and Carl Bruch
Date: 2011
Topics: Assessment, Governance
Wars erupt for many reasons. Political differences, an assassination, or declarations of autonomy may spark the violence that develops into a war. In the last sixty years, four out of ten intrastate conflicts have had a link to natural resources. Natural resources are linked to conflict in various ways: they can contribute to the outbreak of a conflict, sustain them, and undermine peacemaking efforts. For example, warring groups often use diverse sources of funding - including natural resources - to purchase arms and to house, feed, transport, and pay their troops. At least eighteen conflicts that have taken place since 1989 have been directly funded by the exploitation of natural resources. Populations living in regions rich in natural resources may feel that they would benefit from becoming autonomous, especially if revenues from their natural resource base are accruing to a far-away capital. Leaving isolated populations to struggle with the negative externalities from exploitation - such as contaminated land, water, air, and forests - without adequate compensation may create an environment ripe for conflict. In other places, and sometimes in combination with the above, inequitable distribution of land and water may breed grievances that motivate people to join rebel movements. Furthermore, resource revenues from high-value resources can support a dysfunctional state apparatus, fueling corruption and patronage networks and limiting peoples' chance to influence the political elite, creating grievances that can contribute to the outbreak of conflict.