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Conflict-Sensitive Monitoring & Evaluation. Sue Williams, Collaborative for Development Action. Conflict-Sensitive Monitoring & Evaluation. Many assistance programs now take place in situations of conflict, sometimes violent conflict.
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Conflict-Sensitive Monitoring & Evaluation Sue Williams, Collaborative for Development Action USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Conflict-Sensitive Monitoring & Evaluation • Many assistance programs now take place in situations of conflict, sometimes violent conflict. • No agency engages in international assistance in order to make the situation more violent or less peaceful. • How can we be more effective, and cause less damage, in conflict situations? USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Conflict-Sensitive Monitoring & Evaluation • Do No Harm / Local Capacities for Peace • Aimed at humanitarian / emergency aid • Sometimes, aid unintentionally makes conflict worse. • Sometimes, aid supports local capacities for peace. • Careful analysis, planning and monitoring can reduce the likelihood of doing harm, identify local forces for peace, and aim to support them. USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Conflict-Sensitive Monitoring & Evaluation • Reflecting on Peace Practice • Aimed at peace programs • Many peace initiatives have little impact. • Programs which could help to build peace often do not aim to do so, nor monitor and assess this impact. • How can we be more effective, and help to build peace, in conflict situations? USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Do No Harm • Key lessons of Do No Harm: • Aid is not neutral; it influences the context. • Humanitarian, emergency, and development programs in conflict situations have impact beyond their intentions. USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Do No Harm connectors in conflicts. Connectors reduce tension; they draw people together. programs can dividers or connectors. There are dividers and Dividers increase tension; people fight over them. • Aid and development strengthen or reduce USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Do No Harm • There are local capacities for peace in all conflict situations. • Options exist, to promote local capacities for peace, or to undermine them. USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Do No Harm • Resource transfers have an impact. • What resources? How are they distributed? • Who benefits? Who gains power or control? • Implicit ethical messages are conveyed by how the agency works. • Who has authority or legitimacy? • Whose life or property is more important? USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Reflecting on Peace Practice Key Lessons of Reflecting on Peace Practice: • Driven by assumptions & hidden theories • Does the program actually promote peace? • Beyond intentions and objectives • Assessing results • Attributing impact to peace efforts • Assessing changes in the overall situation USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Reflecting on Peace Practice Effective programs have impact at the socio-political level Effective programs have impact on key people as well as more people USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Reflecting on Peace Practice CRITERIA OF EFFECTIVENESS A programme promotes peace effectively when: • It contributes to stopping a key factor favouring war or conflict. • It causes communities to develop their own initiatives for peace based on their context analysis. • It reforms or creates political institutions to handle grievances that fuel conflict. USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
Reflecting on Peace Practice CRITERIA OF EFFECTIVENESS A programme promotes peace effectively when: • It prompts people to resist provocations to violence. • It increases people’s security and their sense of security. USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004
OVERALL LESSONS ANALYSIS of the conflict is crucial. Yet agencies do not: • do systematic analysis • do enough analysis • link strategy to analysis • link their activities to what others are doing in other levels and sectors • extend their activities to the point where they have socio-political impact. USAID West Africa Regional Programme, November, 2004