Aid on Spreadsheets

An Impediment or Inducement to Peace? The Inclusion of Civil Society Actors in the Peace Processes in Sierra Leone and Liberia

Does the involvement of civil society actors in civil war peace processes affect the success or failure of the peace negotiations, and does it affect the long-term prospects for sustainable peace in developing post-war societies? These are pertinent questions that local and international mediators and policymakers grapple over in a large number of contemporary peace processes, notably those in Mali, Syria, Central African Republic, South Sudan and Colombia. The purpose of this project is to identify both the conditions under which civil society actors may influence the dynamics and outcome of a peace process, and explore the more long-term effects of such involvement on the prospects for establishing sustainable peace and democratic governance in war-torn societies. In particular, this project aims to address key questions about the relevance of the number of civil society actors involved, the type of actors, and their various roles and functions during the process. In order to do so, we will conduct an in-depth comparative analysis of two post-war countries, Sierra Leone and Liberia, that have both seen a significant degree of civil society involvement over the years, although with striking differences between various peace negotiations, and with intriguing variations concerning the outcome across time and space. The findings from this project will be of great relevance not only to the academic community, but also to policymakers working on these issues.

Project ID

SE-0-29-2014-3847-251-43082

Activity status

2 - Implementation

Aid type

D02 - Other technical assistance

% to Liberia

100.00

Organisations

Funding

Sweden

Implementing

Uppsala universitet

Extending

None

CRS code	%
Research/scientific institutions (43082)	100.0