Peace, Conflict and Development

When IDRC’s Peace, Conflict, and Development (PCD) program initiative was created in 1996, it was one of the first research-oriented responses to the challenges of peacebuilding. For over a decade, PCD-supported research has provided evidence leading to policy changes, encouraged dialogue, and enhanced accountability in peacebuilding and conflict contexts.

PCD supports applied research and capacity building on peace and conflict research in Latin America and the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. In Guatemala, a PCD-supported partner's research and policy proposal on land conflicts led to a modification of the draft agrarian law. In Uganda, PCD-supported research increased the visibility of the plight of children abducted by armed groups. In the West Bank and Gaza, PCD's research partners provided recommendations on how to strengthen the rule of law while recognizing the co-existence of formal and customary law in the region.

Current initiatives include research on democratization and peacebuilding; the role of diaspora communities and remittances in peace and conflict issues; analyzing and developing approaches to dealing with the trauma and psychosocial aspects of conflict; security sector reform; and building the capacity and networks of peace and security researchers in Eastern Africa and elsewhere.

Objectives

To generate evidence-based findings that can be used to inform policy and programming decisions
To build domestic ownership of peace processes
To open spaces for discussion and dialogue
To influence global policies and practices
To build capacity for more rigorous, methodologically creative, and collaborative research

Our approach to programming

PCD's programming consists of four broad thematic areas:

Democratic processes in governance and peacebuilding: political relations, political power, and how they are exercised and managed
Political economy of peace and conflict: the economics of peace and conflict, political relations, and power
Security and insecurity: the creation and management of security
Violence, trauma, justice and reconciliation: examination of experiences of individual and collective harm and healing

PCD supports research in partnership with institutes, universities, policymakers, and civil society organizations, as well as networks of researchers working globally.

PCD encourages multidisciplinary approaches and cross-regional approaches.

Selected projects

Democratic Governance in the Andean Region

The countries in Latin America's Andean region have experiences yuears of tumultuous politics. In Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, the political reforms of the past 15 years have sometimes led to undemocratic actions, impeachments and depositions of presidents, and riots. The possibilities of short- and mid-term violent conflicts should not be ignored. PCD is supporting a project led by the Instituto de Estudios Peruanos, which responds to the need for strong analyses and policy options that would both enable the democratic participation of social movements and strengthen state institutions in the Andean region.

Diasporas, Transnationalism, and Global Engagement: A Study of Tamil and Sinhala Transnational Communities and Networks in Canada and their Nexus in Sri Lanka

Since the end of the Cold War, there are more civil wars and fewer wars between countries. The paradox is that with globalized trade, cutting-edge information and communication technologies, and large-scale displacement of populations, the dynamics of civil conflicts often extend well beyond borders. A case in point: the diaspora communities that influence the politics of peace and conflict in their home countries. PCD research partner, the International Centre for Ethnic Studies is exploring the positive and negative impacts of diasporic remittances and engagement in development, peacebuilding, and human rights in Sri Lanka.

Building Peace and Security Research Capacity in Eastern Africa

Since the late 1980s and early 1990s, Africa has been plagued by direct violence and conflict and the resultant persistence of "underdevelopment" and poverty. A large part of any potential solutions lies with African themselves; however, research capacity in the region is limited. PCD is partnering with the University for Peace (UPEACE) Africa Programme in Addis Ababa to form a broad-based research network to create a critical mass of researchers with the knowledge, skills, and capacity to provide sound policy recommendations for redressing peace and security threats in Africa.

Security Sector Reform in the Arab World

For meaningful peacebuilding and democratization, citizens must trust that their justice system is impartial; that the police and army are under civilian oversight; and that the streets are generally secure. In the Arab World, however, the security sector is the most neglected area of research in the reforms towards democratization. This PCD-funded project with the Arab Reform Initiative is building knowledge and designing strategies based on local understanding to define a home-grown agenda for reform of the security sector.

See all our projects

Contact information

International Development Research Centre

Peace, Conflict, and Development

P.O. Box 8500

Ottawa ON K1G 3H9

Canada

Tel: +1-613-236-6163

Fax: +1-613-567-7748

Website: http://www.idrc.ca/peace

Email: peace@idrc.ca

Team members

Thematic Program Areas

Document(s)

Peace Conflict and Development Programming Brochure 2008-05-27
See our new brochure describing our programming approach and program objectives. Open file