"Getting Back To Work: Rebuilding Livelihoods in Post-Conflict Environments Workshop" Report

A
section title
Getting
Back to
Work
Rebuilding Livelihoods in
Post-Conflict Environments
April 26-29, 2009
About This Event

The Center for Stabilization and Reconstruction Studies held an
interactive workshop, Getting Back to Work: Rebuilding Livelihoods in
Post-Conflict Environments, April 26-29, 2009, in Monterey, California,
to explore the topic of creating jobs and sustainable livelihoods in
fragile states around the world. The workshop, which was designed
and facilitated by Dr. Nat J. Colletta and Dr. Sophal Ear, provided
stabilization and reconstruction actors with the opportunity to discuss
the challenges and successes of economic recovery initiatives in a wide
array of post-conflict environments, as well as learn new frameworks
and best practices. Participants included 40 US and international
representatives from civilian government agencies, non-governmental
organizations, intergovernmental organizations, the armed forces, and
educational institutions, who provided a wealth of insights into their
own experiences designing and executing economic recovery initiatives.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 Transforming a War Economy
5 The Conflict Environment
13 Tensions and Trends with
Economic Recovery
17 Economic Recovery Initiatives
23 Putting New Insights to Work
The Center for Stabilization and Reconstruction Studies (CSRS) is a

teaching institute which develops and conducts educational programs for
stabilization and reconstruction practitioners, including
representatives from US and international nongovernmental
organizations, intergovernmental organizations, government
civilian agencies, and the armed forces. Established by the
Naval Postgraduate School in 2004 through the vision and congressional support
of Representative Sam Farr (CA-17), CSRS creates a wide array of programs
to foster dialogue among practitioners, as well as to help them develop new
strategies and refine best practices to improve the effectiveness of their
important global work.
Located at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, CSRS
also contributes to the universitys research and graduate degree programs.
For more information about CSRS, its philosophy, and programs, please
visit www.csrs-nps.org.
25 Conclusion
Writing and editing by Holly Larson. Event content synopses provided by Ben Oppenheim.
Cover design by Jesse Darling. Report layout and graphics by Efrain Ferrer. Photography by
Orion Spellman. Copyright 2009 Center for Stabilization and Reconstruction Studies. All rights
reserved. The opinions, conclusions, and recommendations expressed or implied herein are
those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Naval Postgraduate
School, the US Navy, US Defense Department, or any other agency or organization.
1
Transforming a War Economy

Civil wars are fast outpacing intrastate wars as the major source of
the worlds conflicts, according
to leading researchers.1 And the
effects are often ruinous: large-scale
destruction of critical infrastructure,
genocide, increased poverty, and
criminalization, to name just a
few. Of equal importance, civil war
tears the social fabric of a country,
creating profound mistrust and
insularity. Riven by grievance,
greed, and fear, individuals and
groups focus on self-preservation
rather than engaging in the
The Link Between Poverty and Civil War

Predicted probability of civil war onset
within five years (percentage)
Researchers have traced the link between poverty

and violence, demonstrating that increasing a countrys
GDP significantly reduces the probability of a return
to civil war within the five-year window when states
are most vulnerable.
12%
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0
$250
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
$5,000
GDP per capita (in US$)
Source: A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility: Report of the High-level Panel on Threats,
Challenges and Change, United Nations (2004), p. 15. See endnotes for complete citation.2
cooperative, risk-taking behavior

that helps move a society forward.
While the average civil war lasts
seven years,3 the presence of
natural, lootable resources can
significantly extend conflict by
providing financing for rebel forces.
When the violence finally ends,
the damage will take years to undo.
Researchers have found that it can
take a countrys economy up to 21
years to return to its pre-conflict
level4 and that individuals incomes
are 15 percent lower than they
would have been without the war.5
Practitioners know that one of the
best ways they can bolster support
for long-term reconstruction
programs and forestall a return
to conflict is to shore up a fragile
states economy. Many researchers
have traced the link between
poverty and violence, demonstrating
that increasing a countrys GDP
significantly reduces the probability
of a return to civil war during the
five-year window when states are
most vulnerable. As the graphic at
left depicts, countries with a GDP
of 3,000 USD or higher have only a
quarter of the risk of lapsing back
into civil war as those with $250 USD.
2
Learning Objectives
Getting Back to Work was designed to help
participants achieve the following learning objectives:
Develop a deeper knowledge
of post-conflict economic
forces that influence stability,
the rebuilding of livelihoods,
and job creation.
Gain familiarity with operational

tools for designing livelihood
and job creation programs.
But the path forward is a rocky

one. Post-conflict countries typically
suffer from an array of economic
ills, none of which are easy to rectify.
Governments are often shackled
by debt, since revenues have been
funneled into fighting insurgents and
elites have stripped the country of
valuable natural resources. Outsized
militaries are filled with potential
spoilers, troops who are likely to lose
both employment and status when
Explore a range of policy and

programmatic approaches
to rebuilding livelihoods and
promoting job creation and
economic recovery in countries
emerging from armed conflict.
Enhance their understanding
of and professional networking
among the other communities
involved in post-conflict
reconstruction operations.
force reductions begin. Individuals

and communities have often been
displaced, losing access to land
and livelihoods. And social services,
which have long been neglected,
must be rebuilt at a time when
capacity, practitioner skills, and
funding are unlikely to meet
states vast needs.
States must make systemic

changes to rebuild the economy,
addressing resource inequities,
creating supportive policies, and
developing an enabling environment
for economic growth. Yet none of
these changes will likely take hold
in the critical few years immediately
after a conflict. Thus, states must
balance long-term initiatives with
short-term programs that provide
quick wins, such as cash for work
programs that provide short-term
employment and aid in rebuilding
communities. Adding to the
complexity, donor aid, which flows
into a country in conflicts aftermath,
is often withdrawn after two or three
years at the very time the state has
finally developed the absorptive
capacity to use it effectively.
And external actors, despite their
best intentions, may disrupt the
local economy with ill-considered
practices such as hiring external
contractors or paying above-market
wages to local service providers.
Despite these very real constraints
and challenges, stabilization and
reconstruction (S&R) practitioners
realize that economic recovery may
well represent their best chance
to help communities navigate the
divide between emergency relief
and sustainable development.
3
Recognizing that host nations face

an array of societal and economic
ills as they emerge from years
of conflict, actors seek to help
create employment generation
and alternative livelihood
opportunities that will employ
special needs populations, bolster
the local economy, and contribute
to state building and the peace
dividend. Since each post-conflict
environment is unique, practitioners
will need to undertake a detailed
country analysis, studying conflict
drivers and resource inequities,
population needs and aspirations,
infrastructure issues, and local and
state economies, among other factors.
Sometimes environments will be
so degraded that actors will simply
strive to create a holding pattern,
hoping to forestall violence by
creating temporary employment
opportunities for individuals and
communities. When conditions are
more conducive, actors and host
nations will typically implement a
multi-faceted initiative that balances
short-term efforts to bolster the
economy and create public goodwill
with longer-term programs to develop
technical capacity; rebuild critical
infrastructure and services; and
strengthen the economy at the
national, regional, and sectoral
levels so that it can withstand the
departure of actors and donor funding.
CSRS events provide an opportunity for S&R actors from different communities
to share ideas and strategies and broaden professional networks.
Getting Back to Work was designed

to help practitioners enhance
their understanding of the postconflict environment, including
critical conflict drivers and
beneficiary needs, as well as learn
best practices and new strategies
for job creation and livelihoods.
The event, which was hosted by
the Center for Stabilization and
Reconstruction Studies, assembled
40 representatives from US and
international non-governmental
organizations, intergovernmental
organizations, government civilian
agencies, the armed forces, and
educational institutions, among
others. Leading practitioners and
thinkers Dr. Nat J. Colletta,

formerly of the World Bank, and
Dr. Sophal Ear, an assistant professor
at the Naval Postgraduate School,
joined with other presenters to
share frameworks, case studies,
and insights on how to develop job
creation and alternative livelihood
programs that address the needs
of a wide array of fragile states.
To test new insights and skills,
participants practiced developing
job creation strategies for postconflict environments including
Aceh, Afghanistan, Colombia,
Liberia, and Timor-Leste.
4
Economic recovery is just one

of the many critical issues facing
donors, host nations, and actors
working in post-conflict environments.
To provide practitioners with the
opportunity to explore important
issues in-depth, CSRS hosts interactive
workshops on a wide array of
cutting-edge topics in the areas of
conflict prevention, humanitarian
relief, economic recovery and
development, institution building
and security sector reform, and
cross-community understanding.
Workshops help global actors enhance
their cognitive understanding of
critical topics, sharpen skills by
brainstorming new strategies and
testing new approaches to S&R
challenges, and deepen crosscommunity professional networks
they can leverage in the future.
Workshop Facilitators
Dr. Nat J. Colletta was the founding manager of the World Banks
Conflict Prevention and Post Conflict Reconstruction Unit. He now teaches
at New College and works with a number of multilateral and bilateral
agencies and governments, advising organizations extensively on
conflict, security, and development matters.
Dr. Sophal Ear, an assistant professor in the National Security Affairs
Department of the Naval Postgraduate School, has more than a decade
of experience in development consulting, with a focus on Southeast
Asia. His work experience includes stints with the United Nations
Development Programme in East Timor, the Asian Development Bank,
and the World Bank.
5
The Conflict Environment
While greed and grievance fuel conflict, proving

causation can be difficult. Many factors may combine to
fuel conflict, and individuals and groups may be swayed
as equally by cultural and personal narratives as by
their own analytical assessment of societal issues.

Researchers and practitioners
have long debated the role of
greed and grievance in fueling
conflict, pinpointing such issues
as scarcity or inequitable resource
distribution, power imbalances,
ethnic and identity struggles, and
scarcity as critical conflict drivers.
Yet, according to an educator,
proving causation can be difficult,
if not impossible. Many factors
may combine to fuel conflict, and
Dr. Robert McNab, associate professor, Defense Resources Management Institute,

Naval Postgraduate School, helped facilitate a discussion about the different
factors motivating conflict.
individuals and groups may be

swayed as equally by cultural and
personal narratives as by their own
analytical assessment of societal
issues. People like to believe
that they make rational decisions
based on a careful analysis of costs
and benefits. However, they act
in non-rational ways all the time,
said the academic, citing the
behavior of zealous sports fans as a
case in point. In this non-rational
or narrative mode, humans see
history and culture through the
lens of their group identity, whether
it be familial, cultural, ethnic, or
religious. Believing that they play
a vital role in the larger societal
drama, individuals may be motivated
to perpetuate centuries-long feuds
or tribal disputes to preserve group
honor or protect their cultural identity.
6
THE CONFLICT ENVIRONMENT
Individuals, whether perpetrators or victims of

violence, are economic agents and respond to
financial incentives. Participants discussed the
economic incentives fueling conflict in Rwanda,
Iraq, El Salvador, and Darfur.
The educator suggested that actors

should use a different lens to examine
conflict: economics. Individuals,
whether perpetrators or victims
of violence, are economic agents
and respond to financial incentives.
When combined with other factors
such as ethnic hatred or religion,
economic issues such as scarcity,
inequitable resource distribution,
and pervasive poverty can prove
powerful catalysts for violence. The
educator and workshop participants
discussed a wide range of case
studies that proved this point. In
Rwanda, Hutus who participated in
the genocide were motivated, in
part, by a politically sanctioned land
redistribution scheme that enabled
them to seize the arable land of
wealthy Tutsi and Hutu farmers if
no heirs could make claim to it.
Meanwhile, in Iraq, a sheiks edict
that Mahdi Army soldiers could
confiscate the property of Sunni

militants provided both the religious
sanction and financial motivation for
property seizures of ordinary Sunni
citizens. Similarly, El Salvadors
civil war was due in large measure
to the socioeconomic injustice of
disproportionate land ownership,
with a handful of families owning 90
percent of the countrys arable land.
And the ongoing violence in Darfur
can be linked to disputes over land
ownership issues and vital grazing
and water rights.
In this model, violence can easily
become a self-perpetuating cycle.
Conflict increases scarcity, driving
demand for limited resources and
increasing prices, disadvantaging
the poor. Since Western business and
legal norms such as a market-clearing
model, rule-of-law, and legal
contracts to structure economic
activity are not present in conflicttorn countries, business partnerships

and financial transactions become
increasingly precarious. Corruption
can become systemic, as citizens
game the system for their personal
advantage. Resource inequities and
poverty become even more acute,
motivating yet more violence and
destruction and further reducing
opportunities for employment.
An NGO participant challenged
inequitable resource distribution as
a major motivator of conflict, since
this condition is prevalent in many
non-violent countries. However, the
presenter stated that it was, indeed,
a contributor. The argument that
inequality does not cause conflict
is spurious, because it is a blanket
statement, said the presenter. It
is not that one thing causes another,
but it does increase the likelihood
of internal violence.
In addition, participating in conflict,
corruption, or other illegal activities
often provides the only gainful
employment in war-torn or economically
vulnerable countries. When economic
systems are disrupted, infrastructure
destroyed, and insecurity prevalent,
citizens will often engage in illegal
and often highly dangerous activities
simply to survive. For example,
improvised explosive device planting
in Iraq, piracy in Somalia, and poppy
farming in Afghanistan provide
some of the few means of making
an above-market wage in these
degraded environments; as such,
citizens are willing to face physical
harm or even death for the chance
to provide for their families and
potentially transform their lives.
7
Sierra-Leone which provided economic

incentives for ex-combatants. Not
surprisingly, local citizens quickly
amassed multiple identity cards
identifying them as ex-combatants,
enabling them to profit from this
program. Similarly, when actors
strive to rebuild social services
such as healthcare systems, they
must painstakingly vet would-be
practitioners certificates to
combat the pervasive fraud
that typically ensues.
Shannon Rogers, US Agency for International Development (right), shares insights

into creating successful job creation programs with Gwendolyne Sanders,
Naval Postgraduate School.
In Somalia, in particular, one

successful piracy operation can
ensure the financial future of an entire
family. Local communities also benefit,
as pirates use their newfound wealth
to create employment and financial
opportunities for others. While
actors often seek to eradicate such
behavior by punishing perpetrators
or destroying illegal crops, these
efforts are short-sighted. The US
and British Governments have spent
millions of dollars destroying poppy

fields in Afghanistan, but enterprising
farmers have simply shifted production
to other regions. This same principle
extends to economic recovery. If
actors programs privilege one group
at the expense of others, community
members will use diverse strategies
to access and gain benefits. A
government civilian agency member
cited a disarmament, demobilization,
and reintegration program (DDR) in
Participating in conflict, corruption, or illegal

activities often provides the only gainful employment
in war-torn countries. Actors discussed improvised
explosive device planting in Iraq, piracy in Somalia,
and poppy farming in Afghanistan which provide
some of the few means of making an above-market
wage in these degraded environments.
To change society, one must change

both the historical narrative and the
economic incentives that motivate
violence and illicit behavior. The
presenter cited the work of Mothers
Against Drunk Driving, a US-based
advocacy group, as an example.
This institution has had a profound
effect on US culture in just three
decades, successfully working to
change drinking and driving from
an acceptable pastime to an act with
formidable negative legal, social,
and economic repercussions. And
in Sub-Saharan Africa, technological
advances, political pressure, and
negative media coverage combined
to create an environment where
leading jewelry companies were
able to identify diamonds origin
and were motivated to boycott
countries supplying blood diamonds,
or gems used to fuel conflict,
effectively removing that avenue
of funding for African insurgents.
Actors must work to create new
economic incentives, such as cash for
work, sustainable employment, and
community redevelopment initiatives,
that will motivate citizens to seek
8
legal forms of employment and invest

in their own and societys future.
These programs must address real
needs, deliver visible gains, and be
sustainable by communities over
the long-term without the support
or resources of external actors. Actors
will often need to work at multiple
levels: helping host nations implement
macro-economic policies, bolstering
local economies, and seeking to
strengthen prominent or promising
industries. In addition, they
must provide the right combination
of economic incentives and legal
protections to motivate participants in
informal economies to join the formal
economy, expanding the tax base
and contributing to the states growth.
Financing Models in
Non-Western Countries
How do different states manage their economies and respond to
economic crisis or opportunity? An educator used several case
studies to illustrate different banking and financing models.
Her examples included:
Somaliland, which suffered a crippling trade embargo when
Saudi Arabia, its principal trade partner, refused to purchase livestock
in the wake of an animal health scare. As a consequence, economic
growth ground to a halt. While the nation was economically dependent
on livestock sales, it was forced to diversify into new exports such as
mango juice, henna, frankincense, and labor. Although the country
As they seek to partner effectively

with host nations, actors struggle
with a professional culture that
favors short in-country assignments
and frequent staff rotations over
longer assignments that would
enable personnel to develop the
cross-community relationships,
knowledge base, professional
reputation, and continuity that
are vital to ensuring the success of
long-term initiatives. We are good
first responders, said a military
officer. We spend a lot of money
and put people to work for a period
of time. But we need to get better
about generating a successful program
that we can then hand off to the
community. Concurred an NGO
member: NGOs are also notorious
for moving people in for a short
period of time and then moving
them on. Its frustrating. You learn
about a place and then leave. It
is to the detriment of what we
are trying to do.
is not officially recognized, it has a crude centralized banking system

that functions quite effectively, said the educator. Currency traders
cluster under the central bankers balcony, allowing him to monitor
exchange rates. When rates are inauspicious, the banker physically
hands over foreign exchange reserves for sale.
Afghanistan, which reestablished a centralized banking and payments

system in the aftermath of 9/11, replacing regional currency systems
that had been implemented by warlords. The nations currency traders
helped implement the system, decreasing the time and cost to
accomplish this important task. The country also leverages a money
transfer system called hawala to ensure the orderly exchange of funds.
East Timor, which decided to adopt US currency as its own. That

decision has wreaked havoc on its economy as the nation is not able
to manipulate and devalue its currency.
Countries that have used bulk cash smuggling in the absence of money
transfer networks or to fund illicit activities without detection. Bulk cash
smuggling has been used by Iraqi militants to fund insurgency and by the
Hezbollah to fund reconstruction efforts in Lebanon.
9
State Fragility and

Governance
Two workshop presenters facilitated
a discussion on the nature of state
fragility and the importance of
good governance in readying states
for long-term change. Fragile states
have a disproportionate percentage
of the worlds poor and receive
less aid than they need, stated an
educator. As a consequence, they
can often slip in and out of crisis,
which can hinder actors ability to
phase economic recovery initiatives
and help states transition from
interim stabilization to longer-term
reconstruction initiatives.
One hallmark of a functioning state

is its ability to maintain an effective
monopoly over its weapons. If states
cannot control their arms, coercion
will become privatized. Citizens will
then be forced to pay for security;
predation will increase; and a states
physical, economic, human, and
social capital will be compromised.
While actors typically focus on
rebuilding physical and economic
capital, from reconstructing
infrastructure to implementing
jobs programs, human and social
capital are just as vital. Violence
harms a states human capital,
displacing, wounding, and killing its
citizens, with women and children
among the most affected. In 2008,
Different Types of Social Capital and

Their Impacts on States
Civil Society
VERTICAL SOCIAL CAPITAL
The State
High Social Cohesion

Low Conflict

Inclusion
Rule of Law
Open Media
Effective, Engaging
Non-Corrupt Government
HORIZONTAL SOCIAL CAPITAL
Kin-Oriented
Associative / Networked
Bridging Social Capital
Bonding Social Capital
Low Social Cohesion

High Conflict
Exclusion

Authoritarian State
Growth-Oriented Markets
Oppression
Inequality / Inequity
Individuals / Communities
Source: Dr. Nat J. Colletta and Michelle L. Cullen. Violent Conflict and the Transformation
of Social Capital: Lessons from Cambodia, Rwanda, Guatemala, and Somalia,
The World Bank (2000), p. 14.
47 percent of refugees and asylumseekers were women and girls, while

44 percent were children under
the age of 18.6 Citizens who live in
insecure environments turn inward,
focusing only on their self-preservation
and protection of their families.
While this type of myopic behavior,
called bonding social capital, helps
individuals navigate crisis, it prevents
states from moving forward.
(See graphic below.)
When states provide security and
justice to all of its citizens, promote
transparency and involvement, and
address resource inequities, they
provide an environment where
citizens can plan for the future. In
such an environment, citizens will
then demonstrate bridging social
capital: taking risks; exhibiting
entrepreneurialism; and forming
personal and professional networks
that cross ethnic, religious, and
other divides. This type of capital
promotes public goodwill and
societal cohesion. In addition to
providing good governance, states
can help promote bridging social
capital by investing in civic education.
By involving disenfranchised
populations in the political process,
states can give citizens choice and
voice and increase their buy-in to
governmental decision making.
One participant highlighted a program
in Nigeria where ex-combatants
are taught how to monitor and
track participatory decision making
and spending and serve as election
monitors and observers. They
see that government processes
are credible and learn how to get
engaged, stated the participant.
10
Implementing the World

Banks Conflict Analysis
Framework
Recognizing that conflict impedes
long-term development, the World
Bank created a tool to analyze different
conflict drivers present in fragile
and failed states and assess both the
probability and opportunities for the
outbreak and escalation of violence.
The framework looks at six critical areas:
social and ethnic relations, governance
and political institutions, human rights
and security, economic structure and
performance, environment and natural
resources, and external factors.
(See graphic below.)
Actors can use the framework to

increase their sensitivity to
conflict drivers and ensure they
are adequately addressed in their
long-term strategies. Based on
past experience, actors know that
development and poverty reduction
initiatives have the potential to
mitigate root issues contributing
to conflict or exacerbate them.
Participants talked about actors
work in northern Uganda, where
internally displaced persons (IDPs)
are being asked to return to villages
with no supporting infrastructure
as an example of what can happen
when initiatives are poorly conceived
and executed. Concurred an IGO
member: There is a total lack of

preparation in northern Uganda.
Who is to be ashamed here?
The government? The donors?
According to the IGO member,
successful programs will address
not just economic recovery, but also
such factors as security, governance,
and social stability. Since security is
inextricably intertwined with
economic recovery, actors will
often work on two tracks, seeking
to create a safe, secure environment
where business and trade can flourish,
while also creating the employment
opportunities themselves.
The World Banks Conflict Analysis Framework

Social and
Ethnic Relations
Governance and
Political Institutions
Human Rights
and Security
Economic Structure
and Performance
Environment and
Natural Resources
External Forces
Social and economic

cleavages
Governance and
political institutions
Role of media and

freedom of expression
Economic growth
Availability of natural
resources
Regional conflicts
Ethnic cleavages
Stability of political
institutions
Human rights status
Income disparities
Access to natural
resources
(including land)
Role of kindred groups

outside country
Regional imbalances
Equity of
law/judicial system
Militarization
of the society
Per capita income

changes
In-country and crossborder competition

over natural resources
Role of diaspora
Differential social
opportunities
Links between
government and
citizens
Security of civilians
Inflationary trends
Bridging social capital
External debt
management
Group identity-building
Reliance on high-value
primary commodities
Myth-making
Employment and access

to productive resources
Culture or tradition
of violence
Conflict-induced
poverty
Source: The Conflict Analysis Framework (CAF): Identifying Conflict-related Obstacles to Development, Conflict Prevention and
Reconstruction Unit, The World Bank (October 2002), p. 2.
11
Oftentimes actors are faced with

conditions that simply are not
conducive to long-term development,
such as weak capacity, illegitimate
governments, or severely degraded
physical environments, to name just
a few. In these scenarios, actors
may strive to create an interim
stabilization or holding pattern,
hoping that short-term gains that
may help create a more auspicious
environment for longer-term
programs to take root.
Pictured in foreground: Brian Kriz, Save the Children.
Profiling War-Affected
Populations
A critical part of designing job
creation strategies is understanding
local needs. Actors can use focus
groups and individual interviews to
profile beneficiaries. In addition to
gathering critical demographic data,
such as age, education, property
ownership, and assets, interviewers
should ask beneficiaries about
their aspirations. By conducting a
detailed assessment, actors can
identify and prioritize beneficiary
needs. Next, they should map local
opportunities, focusing on the
most promising sectors with labor
shortages, identifying what skills are
required to fill existing demand, and
strategizing how workers can best be
prepared to fill these jobs. Finally,
actors should research institutional
capacity and gaps. Data sources that
can be consulted include pre-conflict
and current labor market data;
existing livelihood and employment
programs; and focus group interviews
and workshops with all relevant
stakeholders, including line ministry
officials, assistance agencies,
business associations, unions,
and the communities themselves.
12
THE CONFLICT ENVIRONMENT
Although host government priorities

are important, the programs
proposed may not always be
achievable or represent the best
path forward. For example, in
Mozambique in 1992, the Ministry of
Labor wanted to provide vocational
training opportunities for 100,000
ex-combatants. Since it would have
taken up to two years to set up
the appropriate infrastructure, the
World Bank opted instead to pilot
three different types of programs:
financing for existing vocational
schools; vouchers that ex-combatants
could cash with the provider of
their choice; and wage subsidies
for small businesses willing to train
three to five ex-combatants for six
months. The program with the best,
most cost-effective results? The
small business apprenticeships. The
voucher program required so much
administrative capacity that it was
never launched, while the vocational
schools provided adequate training,
but at double the cost of the small
business program. Meanwhile, excombatants working side-by-side
with entrepreneurs learned how to
run a business, and in many cases
were hired after the program
concluded. While the small business
owners likely would not have been
motivated to hire the ex-combatants
at the program outset, the program
enabled them to train future
employees at no cost to the business
and benefit from their labor,
easing both the hiring decision
and ex-combatants transition
into the workforce.
Pictured: Major Sean Sutherland, US Air Force, shares his insights on

military-led reconstruction projects with Dr. Moyara Ruehsen, Monterey Institute
for International Studies.
Tapping the Potential

of Local Economic
Development
An IGO member profiled the
International Labour Organizations
work in local economic development,
which is a grassroots approach to
fostering community recovery and
development. Actors reach out to
local and provincial agencies to
help local stakeholders use dialogue
and knowledge sharing to design
a strategic framework that meets
the unique needs of the community.
To revitalize the local community,
actors help communities create or
reestablish links with vital resources,
such as production-market chains,
technical and production knowledge,

and networks with suppliers and
customers. The IGO member said
that actors seeking to implement
a local economic development
model should survey local needs
and foster community ownership
of the approach, before creating a
forum where stakeholders can share
ideas and cooperatively develop
a strategy and coordination and
implementation mechanisms. The
local economic development model
has been deployed in Iraq and was
subsequently used as a foundation
for a large-scale private sector
development program, she said.
13
Tensions and Trends with Economic Recovery
While donors often favor expensive, long-term

reconstruction programs, many actors believe that
grassroots, small-scale projects provide the best
mechanism for creating community goodwill and
generating new economic opportunities.
Tensions and Trends

with Economic Recovery
Participants discussed the tensions
that exist between donors, host
nations, and actors who often have
competing priorities for economic
recovery. Donors may favor expensive,
long-term reconstruction programs
that fail to deliver near-term results
communities can see, but are easier
to fund, contract, and manage. Host
nations may have a high awareness
of the societal ills that beset them,
but may struggle to prioritize needs
or favor projects that benefit just a
subset of their citizens. And actors
sometimes seek to implement
Western economic and business
norms such as privatization and
economic competition at a time
when host nations are ill-equipped
to absorb their impacts. Systemic
changes only work well when an
enabling environment has been
created, the host nation has the
political will to execute them, and
they are capable of being sustained
over the long-term.
Despite donors penchant for

big bang projects, many actors
believe that grassroots, small-scale
projects provide the best mechanism
for creating community goodwill
and generating new economic
opportunities. Local projects
typically reflect real needs, are
more efficient than large-scale
development initiatives, are less
likely to go awry in implementation,
and can create easy-to-sustain
processes communities are motivated
to maintain. Of equal importance,
these initiatives give community
members a say in how money is
spent. When there is a finite
amount of money involved, people
get very smart about how to
spend it, stated a participant.
Programs such as animal inoculation,
agricultural training, and small
business loans may pay longer-lasting
dividends than high-cost vocational
training or infrastructure projects,
especially if these initiatives are
implemented in the absence of
the basic infrastructure required
to sustain them.
14
Using the UNs

Job Creation Framework
A presenter profiled the United Nations (UN) employment and reintegration
framework for post-conflict environments. The framework, which was designed
to maximize the effectiveness and ensure the coherence of UN agencies working
in a fragile state, seeks to help restore the economy; generate employment
for special needs populations such as ex-combatants, refugees, and IDPs; and
contribute to the peace dividend. It is governed by five guiding principles: to
be coherent and comprehensive, to do no harm, to be conflict-sensitive, to
aim for sustainability, and to promote gender equality.
The framework has three tracks, all of which are designed to be launched in
post-conflict environments before peace accords are signed. (See graphic below.)
The stabilization track provides emergency employment for special needs
populations, such as cash and food for work projects and short-term skills training,
as well as startup kits and seed money for livelihoods. The reintegration track
targets specific geographies and seeks to build local capacity and promote
community recovery by using local labor for infrastructure reconstruction projects
and providing a wide array of business services, including counseling and referral,
short-term vocational training, and microfinance opportunities. Finally, the
transition track works on the macroeconomic level to promote sustainable
employment by implementing the right policies and ensuring rule-of-law.
Recognizing that donor involvement is finite, the UN also seeks to involve
the private sector in recovery and development efforts.
One Programme on Three Concurrent Tracks

Peace Negotiation
Pre-Peace Accord Planning
Pilot Programmes
(curves measure intensity of programmes)
Peace Building Process
Stabilization Track: Stabilizing Income Generation

& Emergency Employment
Local Reintegration Track: Local Economic Recovery
for Employment Opportunities and Reintegration
Transition Track: Sustainable Employment Creation
and Decent Work
Source: United Nations Policy for Post-Conflict Employment Creation, Income

Generation and Reintegration, United Nations (May 2008), p. 8.
Most actors administering communitylevel projects promote democratic

decision making, giving disenfranchised
populations, such as women and
youth, a voice in how initiatives
are selected and implemented.
However, a government civilian
agency representative stated that
these types of initiatives can be
difficult to run, as agencies do not
have the infrastructure to manage
myriad small initiatives unless they
outsource their management
to local contractors.
An educator provided a cautionary
tale of what can go wrong when
actors ignore local needs and
implement Western best practices.
The Army Corps of Engineers
undertook a major development
initiative at the Erbil Maternity
Hospital in Iraq, installing a reverse
osmosis system, boilers, and an
incinerator. Within seven months,
the hospital had suffered major
process failures, as staff did
not understand how to use or
maintain new equipment.
15
So what are some of the best practices

and emerging trends with economic
recovery? Participants discussed:
Pictured from left to right: Ben Oppenheim, University of California at Berkeley; Ineba
Elizabeth Bob-Manuel, International Foundation for Education and Self-Help; Paul
Greening, International Organization for Migration; and David Odigie, MARKETS.
As a contrast, when offered

development assistance to update
failing pumps at the Sadr Water
Station, local government officials
accepted, but opted to manage
the design and contracting process,
maintaining tight control over
all decision making. Rather than
implement state-of-the-art
technology, the officials decided
to replace their existing systems.
The pumps remain in use to this
day in large measure because
maintenance personnel know
how to repair them.
Replacing commodities grants, which

can undermine the local economy
and create a high cost, complex
supply chain, with cash for work.
Cash for work is an important
part of stabilization, said an
IGO member. By putting cash in
peoples hands actors empower
recipients, letting them prioritize
their needs. Funds are usually
spent in the local community,
fueling recovery and providing a
trickle-down effect that improves
quality of life for many.
Pairing employment programs
with basic life skills and psychosocial
programs. In countries as various
as Colombia and Uganda, actors
have taught ex-combatants the
principles of basic finance by
depositing funds into bank accounts,
enabling them to build credit and
plan for expenses. Meanwhile,
special needs populations often
have complex psycho-social issues
and need access to counseling
services, mentoring, and other
resource-intensive programs to
address the legacy of conflict.
16
Considering gender issues and

creating programs that help women
build livelihoods and provide for
their families, while respecting
cultural norms. In cultural milieus
where patriarchalism and domestic
violence is rampant, it can be
extremely difficult to design
programs that empower women.
However, many organizations
have realized that women are
vital to a countrys economic
recovery. The Grameen Bank and
other microfinance entities have
demonstrated that women often
use small business loans more
effectively than men, may be the
financial mainstay of their families,
and are more likely to repay loans
than their male counterparts. In
fact, as of May 2009, 97 percent
of Grameen Banks 7.86 million
borrowers were women.7
Working with states to develop

business-friendly policies, easing
regulation and taxation for start-ups
and addressing resource inequities
and needs such as property rights,
access to credit, and materials.
An IGO member cited a state with
a 29-step registration process,
which discouraged local citizens
from legitimizing their businesses
and deprived the state of vital tax
revenues. In the short-term, the
informal economy absorbs a lot of
labor, stated the IGO member. But
in the long-term, it holds states back.
Involving multi-nationals in
creating vital capacity by assessing
skill needs, partnering with trade
associations to design training
programs, and creating tax breaks
and other benefits to motivate
employers to hire local employees
and expand their operations.
Fully considering the long-term

implications of major policy
and programmatic interventions.
While actors efforts to promote
competition and restructure
existing industries may be wellintentioned and represent desirable
long-term objectives, they may
have unforeseen negative impacts
if abruptly implemented. The
US Governments decision to
privatize the Iraqi Army and remove
100,000 troops, including its most
highly educated and managerially
experienced officers, had a hugely
detrimental impact on the local
economy, stated an educator.
Each military member supported
a subsistence network of five or
more individuals, meaning that
job losses reverberated far
throughout the community.
17
Economic Recovery Initiatives

Rebuilding Infrastructure
and Promoting
Job Creation in Iraq
Two military officers presented on
armed forces-led reconstruction and
job creation projects in Iraq. They
stated that the militarys short field
assignments made it difficult to study
critical issues and interdependencies
before launching programs. One of
the officers cited his work in Iraq as
Participants heard presentations from practitioners with a wealth of experience in

designing and implementing job creation and alternative livelihood strategies.
an example, where black market fuel

sales, illegal energy and water use,
and load-shedding issues complicated
the militarys attempts to provide
businesses with power. If the military
had discussed these issues at the
provincial and national level with
host nation agencies, they could
have been better addressed. Military
forces involved in reconstruction
programs often operate in a datastarved environment: lacking access
to vital socio-economic data, insights
to connect micro-economic activity
with macro-economic policy, and
relationships with other private
sector and civilian actors operating in
the same space. I would never send
a mission to take out a target with
such depraved data, and yet we did
it every day in the economic realm
in Iraq, stated an officer.
18
In addition, ill-thought-out
reconstruction projects can meet
with failure or potentially worsen
the economic environment. The
military officer cited the example
of a clinic, built to appease a local
sheik, that could not get adequate
staffing, because it had no support
from the Ministry of Health. And the
trucking industry, which flourished
when the US military closed the rail
network, now employs thousands
of people. When a refinery in Anbar
began transporting fuel by rail,
rather than truck, truckers retaliated
by placing improvised explosive
devices on the track. If we started
the railroads again, we would
steal livelihoods from a second
economy that has now sprung up,
the officer stated.
The opportunity in Iraq lies not
with state-owned industries, which
continue to pay their employees
even as operations lie idle, but
with small businesses and private
enterprises, said the officer. Small

businesses spring up to meet market
needs, employ local citizens, and are
non-energy-intensive. While small
businesses typically qualify for grants
and micro-loans, other enterprises
often have financing challenges as
they are too large for micro-loans
or too small for venture capital
or investment bank funding. The
growth problem is with the missing
middle, stated the officer. The
middle market isnt served well by
most programs. They dont need
just $1,000; they need $10,000 to
$300,000. To provide organizations
in Anbar with lending opportunities,
the military contracted with a nonprofit organization which will qualify
businesses readiness for funding and
facilitate access to capital markets.
We measure internal rates of return
for businesses, financial rates of
return for investors, and economic
rates of return for communities. We
should also measure a stabilization
and reconstruction rate of return.
Is a happier wealthier, entrepreneur
more likely to be a peaceable,
law-abiding citizen? We need to
figure that out, stated the officer.
Understanding Gender
Issues in Colombia
An NGO member presented on
gender issues in Colombia that
affect job creation and livelihood
programs. Educational achievement
for women has risen over the past
several decades, but only 22 percent
complete college. Women also earn
significantly less than their male
counterparts in the workforce.
While oil, mining, and private
security provide many of the best
employment opportunities for
Colombians, women are excluded
from these industries. In addition,
they lack access to day care
services that would enable
them to take advantage of work
opportunities, a critical problem
since women head 40 percent of
households in Colombia.
While the Colombian government has
launched a comprehensive program
to reintegrate ex-combatants, it has
ignored female victims of the conflict
who have been displaced, raped, and
forced into polygamous relationships
with guerilla or paramilitary fighters.
Domestic violence and polygamy is
culturally accepted in Colombia,
the NGO member said.
19
Women need legal protection to

settle labor disputes, protect land
rights, and pursue domestic violence
claims. While cultural change is slow
in coming, there have been smallscale successes. A new law makes it
impossible for women to withdraw
from domestic disputes once they
have filed suit. Since many victims
withdraw their cases due to societal
pressure or stigma, this law could
help more women pursue justice
against their attackers, she said.
Increasing Citizen
Involvement in Guatemala
Melanie Peyser, Office of the Secretary of Defense, discusses government civilian

agency priorities with Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Chisholm, US Marine Corps.
An IGO member presented a case

study on a new vision for security
in Guatemala. Deep-rooted social
inequalities and a failed attempt at
democratization have fed a thirtyyear conflict in the country. While
the government negotiated a peace
accord in 1996, it has not yet been
implemented, due to a lack of
political will and capacity. Critical
issues that fed the conflict, such
as inequitable land distribution,
insufficient reparations, and human
rights, have not been satisfactorily
addressed, and the countrys
current economic gains benefit the
privileged at the expense of the
poor. As a consequence, the country
has suffered a significant upswing in
organized crime and social violence,
with the majority of homicides
occurring in poor, non-indigenous
municipalities. If Guatemala is to
create sustainable employment
and livelihoods, international
governments must apply pressure
on the country to fulfill its peace

accords, as well as provide vital
investment and technical support.
The speaker also stressed the
need for a new model of
political involvement he called
citizen security, providing local
communities with choice and
voice in political decision making.
Preparing for Reintegration

in Northern Uganda
A presenter offered his insights
into an IGOs efforts to generate
employment in Northern Uganda.
The country faces numerous
challenges, including the return
and reintegration of IDPs and excombatants, an economy that is
heavily dependent on subsistence
farming, and continued insecurity.
Donors, government authorities,
and NGOs have worked together at

the district level to set priorities and
fund programs. Community groups
were used to deliver basic services
to IDPs in the camps, including
healthcare, education, and water
during the conflict, and UN agencies
are now providing services through
the cluster system. Donors are
providing training and cash grants
villagers can use to purchase supplies
and start businesses such as tailor
shops and transportation services.
Villagers contribute earnings to
savings cooperatives, enabling
others to borrow money and create
businesses of their own. Subsistence
farmers, who represent 88 percent
of the population in transition sites
and villages, receive supplies such
as seed, oxen, and ploughs, as
well as basic literacy classes.
20
According to the presenter, Consolidated
Appeals Process (CAP) funding has

been cut 50 percent, from $450
million to $225 million, as donors
seek to move into the recovery
phase. However, systemic problems
still remain: While ex-combatants
from the Lords Resistance Army
are participating in cleansing
ceremonies to gain community
acceptance, many of the youth
will likely not want to return to
home villages from which they
were kidnapped up to two decades
earlier. Senior combatants have
assumed positions of authority
in the districts,exercising undue
sway over contracting decisions.
And villages lack basic infrastructure,
including access to water, sanitation,
and medical services, making IDPs
reluctant to leave camps. However,
most of the camps are located on
private land, which landowners
are now seeking to reclaim for
their own use.
We are taking the people to
villages where there is no water,
no toilets, no classrooms, stated
the presenter. There is no structure,
and yet we are trying to move
swiftly from stabilization to
recovery. This country case study
provides a cautionary tale of what
can happen when conflict drivers
and infrastructure issues are not
addressed, yet donors still strive
to adhere to rigid funding models
and implementation frameworks.
Promoting Social
Cohesion and
Reintegration in Aceh
An NGO member profiled a project
to promote economic recovery and
social cohesion in Acehs rural villages.
Villagers work together to develop
proposals for grants of $8,000 to
use on small-scale reconstruction
project or revitalization projects,
select implementation teams,
and monitor progress to ensure
accountability. The villagers do the
work themselves. With contractors,
you get corruption, stated the NGO
member. Villages that opted to
use the work for reconstruction
projects built roads or dug drainage
ditches to prevent flooding,
making land usable year-around.
Some villages used grants to
purchase agriculture equipment
such as tractors and threshing
machines, which could be rented
to generate income. However, most
villages chose to purchase wedding
and party equipment. The reason
why? Village weddings and ceremonies
were highly elaborate and a

source of civic pride. Purchasing
equipment allowed the villages to earn
rental income by renting it to other
villages and make it available to poor
residents, who previously were not
able to afford such luxuries.
Actors required that projects had to
include the participation of at least
40 percent of the villages women
to ensure that they had a voice in
decision making processes. Most of
the villages also selected women
as their project bookkeepers,
since they were deemed to be more
honest and reliable than their male
counterparts. Ex-combatants were
included in the implementation
phase of projects.
Because the project emphasized
transparency, inclusiveness, and
democratic decision making, it
was widely accepted by area
communities. In many cases,
villagers added their own money
to grants to expand the scope of
what they undertook. Villagers
were eager to learn new skills,
such as preparing proposals and
budgets, monitoring projects, and
keeping books. And at the end of
each project, villages hosted a
handover and a blessing ceremony,
creating social cohesiveness.
21
Leveraging the Private

Sector in Haiti
An NGO member highlighted a job
creation program funded by the US
Agency for International Development
which was designed to legitimize the
government and reduce the potential
for conflict in Haiti. The four-year
program, which targeted urban areas
where unemployment was high,
sought to create 100,000 short-term
jobs and 10,000 long-term jobs. Youth,
who were involved in gangs and
drug trafficking, were among
the groups targeted.
To focus efforts effectively, donors
conducted a workforce gap analysis,
identifying the critical skills required
by private sector companies and
the gaps that existed between
prospective employees abilities
and these benchmarks. The program
delivered entrepreneurship training,
helped beneficiaries link to local
microfinance institutions and apply for
loans, and facilitated private sector
investment and market linkages.
Since textile manufacturing is one
of the countrys most successful
industries, the NGO designed a threetrack program that would capitalize
on the countrys preferential trade
agreements with the United States.
At the national level, the program
sought to build up the industrys
infrastructure; at the sector level,
actors partnered with private sector
companies to establish a training
center that would help prospective
workers learn garment making and
life skills; and at the individual firm
level, companies received operational

assistance and training. A lot of
people consider the private sector as
the bad guys, but it makes sense
to build on pre-conflict industries
and leverage existing relationships,
stated the speaker.
The NGO member stressed the
tension between donors desire to
achieve rapid results and the long
timeframes and high investment
required to accomplish institution
building. Theres a tendency to
hit numbers, instead of make
the critical investments that are
needed to build up the government
and the private sector, she stated,
adding that it can take years to
build the right relationships with
private sector firms.
Pictured in foreground: Arturo Matute, United Nations Development Programme.
22
CSRS Workshops
quick-impact, high income projects
that address the entire agricultural
value chain. Not everyone can
work on farms, said an NGO
member, but agriculture can
also generate jobs in production,
marketing, and transportation.
The NGO trains community members
on agricultural best practices,
including seed replacement,
fertilization, and cultivation of
indigenous crops, holding field
demonstrations so that farmers will
be able to replicate new techniques
on their own. The NGO also works
on the sector level, facilitating
credit and microfinance opportunities
for farmers. The system is working
so well, stated the NGO member,
that farmers in the Ebonyi State
are now able to plan for the future
by building homes, buying cars or
motorbikes for transportation, and
educating their children. While
the NGO has had success in several
states, it has also had to abandon
some projects due to insecurity.
CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR:

Cognitive learning
Practical skills development
Professional, cross-community networking
CSRS holds workshops

on a wide array of
cutting-edge topics for
S&R practitioners.
An NGO Targets
Agricultural Development
Although Nigeria has abundant
natural resources, the country lacks
vital infrastructure and its people
live in poverty, with more than 70
percent dependent on subsistence
agriculture. A participant profiled the
work of an agriculture-focused NGO,
which seeks to work collaboratively
with local communities to deploy
The presence of affluent

multinationals, some of whom
work for companies that have
despoiled natural resources, is
a concern for NGOs and other
actors operating in the area. If a
politician dangles money and tells
citizens to burn houses, they will
do it. We need to give people the
opportunity to create a livelihood,
so that they have choices and
dont resort to violence.
23
Putting New Insights to Work
Participants practiced new skills by performing

country analyses and designing job creation
strategies for countries as various as Aceh,
Afghanistan, Colombia, Liberia, and Timor-Leste.
Putting New
Insights to Work
To help participants practice new
skills, workshop facilitators assigned
case studies, instructing participants
to perform country analyses and
then design a job creation strategy
that met the unique needs of that
particular post-conflict environment.
Countries included Aceh, Afghanistan,
Colombia, Liberia, and Timor-Leste.
The facilitator challenged the group
to design specific projects that would
promote social reconciliation and
jumpstart the economy, while
also laying the groundwork for
longer-term recovery.
Pictured from left to right: Master Sergeant Miguel Espinoza, US Army; David Odigie;
and Dr. Isabel Londono, Women for Colombia Foundation.
Aceh: Since Aceh has a functioning

government and economy, the
Aceh group stated that they would
implement public works projects
such as irrigation initiatives in remote
areas to bolster the economy. Midterm, actors would work with local
governments to implement supportive
policies, such as tax breaks and
anti-corruption campaigns, promote
exchange programs to build internal
capacity, and increase media and
governmental transparency.
24
Putting New Insights to Work
Afghanistan: Since illicit agribusiness

dominates the Afghan economy,
the Afghanistan group decided to
focus on promoting sustainable
livelihoods. The group decided to
work collaboratively with tribal
leaders, district officials, women,
and other stakeholders to design
a local job creation strategy. To
create short-term gains, the group
would fund public works projects
such as bridge and road building
and reforestation and offer formal
security training to provide youth
with the opportunity to join police
or local security forces, rather
than the Taliban. In addition,
the group decided to offer civic
education to strengthen public
involvement in political decision
making. Longer-term, the group
hoped to make Kandahar the primary
source of midwives for the Middle
East. Two facilitators challenged
the group and asked members if
they had considered developing
institutional capacity, strengthening
financial systems, and developing
pro-business economic policies.
However, the group stated that they
wished to consult with local leaders
before developing a longer-term vision.
Colombia: Since Colombia has such

a high number of ex-combatants,
the group decided to develop a
life skills and vocational training
program. Each ex-combatant,
who would be paired with a
civilian, would receive basic life
and vocational skills training, with
the goal of passing the General
Education Development exam and
entering a new career path such
as forest preservation or poultry or
dairy farming. Each ex-combatant
would also be eligible for a grant
of $5,000 to start a new business.
Civilians would receive remuneration
for administering training, which
would reduce community ill-will to
ex-combatants and motivate their
participation in the program.
Timor-Leste: While Timor-Leste
benefits from oil revenues, the
government has committed to
overly generous pensions, which
could hurt the economy if resources
diminish or oil prices fall. The group
decided to focus on the Baucau
region, which suffers from high
unemployment, an unskilled labor
pool, environmental problems, and
infrastructure destruction, among
other ills. The group decided to
involve village chiefs, women, and
civil society organizations in the
design and implementation of a

local economic development and
income generation program. Social
objectives included a drive to
increase school enrollment for youth
and women in an effort to reduce
high illiteracy and decrease fertility
rates and the promotion of karate
groups to provide participants with a
socially appropriate outlet for their
aggression to help reduce family
violence. Job creation efforts would
include small business training, the
creation of irrigation systems, and
environmental projects to prevent
erosion and clean up local rivers
and communities. To create new
financial systems, the group proposed
developing agricultural credit unions
that would provide small business
loans. To encourage the diaspora to
return, the group would offer loan
forgiveness programs in return for
short-term volunteerism. However,
the group acknowledged that it had
not adequately considered how to
build and mobilize local capacity.
Liberia: The Liberia group proposed
conducting an assessment to
determine the state of agricultural
infrastructure and supply processes.
Job creation programs would include
public works such as roads and small
bridges and training in the areas
of communication and agriculture.
The program would also address
critical issues such as land ownership
and allocation, the availability of
agricultural supplies such as tools
and seeds, and the development of
agricultural cooperatives. Longerterm, the program would strive to
strengthen related industries such
as food processing and packing.
25
Conclusion
Violence and poverty are inextricably linked, yet

can be broken with the right interventions. At the
most basic level, actors implementing job creation
programs are replacing economic incentives for
perpetuating conflict with economic incentives
for sustaining peace.
Conclusion
Violence and poverty: The two
are inextricably linked, yet can be
broken with the right interventions.
Decades of academic research
have confirmed what S&R actors
have long suspected, which is that
rebuilding broken states economies
can not only stop the vicious cycle
of conflict, but can also help build
bridges over the sharp religious,
ethnic, and other schisms that have
historically fractured them. At the
most basic level, actors seek to
work with host nations to replace
economic incentives for perpetuating
conflict with economic incentives
for sustaining peace.
How to bolster fragile states
economies remains a topic of
much debate. Actors know that
they must help host nations with
some formidable challenges.
Bloated militaries will need to be
reduced, social services restored,
inequities rectified, and special
needs populations employed. But
how to accomplish these goals
will necessarily vary with each

country. However, some constants
remain: ensuring host government
ownership, involving the full range
of stakeholders in program design;
considering community needs;
working at the local, regional, and
sectoral levels; and planning for
sustainability. Workshop participants
also stressed the need for flexibility
in crafting programs that address
the needs of local populations and
the limits of degraded environments,
in funding and sequencing economic
recovery phases, and in deploying
teams for longer assignments to
post-conflict environments. Too
often, they said, donor requirements,
political objectives, and organizational
mandates limit the effectiveness
of what actors can accomplish on
the ground by prescribing or
circumscribing initiatives.
26
Conclusion
If actors and host nations can craft

the right mix of programs that
improve the lives of ordinary citizens
while setting the stage for longterm recovery, they can help a
nation begin to build a different
kind of future. In this new future,
the state creates an enabling
environment, while citizens exhibit
entrepreneurialism and risk-taking,
investing in their own futures.
Economic gains help citizens reap the
benefits of the peace dividend and
give a state vital time to strengthen
institutions, build capacity, and
implement good governance.
Getting Back to Work helped

practitioners, many of whom have
been instrumental in rebuilding
fragile states economies around
the world, understand the full
range of issues, resources, and
best practices involved with
designing and implementing job
creation and alternative livelihood
programs. Workshop presenters
shared strategies, illuminating both
successes and shortcomings from past
initiatives, as well as frameworks
participants could put to use in
future fieldwork. As practitioners
work hand-in-hand with host nation
counterparts to design culturally
appropriate, sustainable programs,
they will be able to leverage a wealth
of insights and tools gleaned from
Getting Back to Work.
Endnotes
1 A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility: Report of
the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change,
United Nations (2004), p. 11.
2 Ibid, p. 15. Graphic based on research undertaken by Macartan
Humphreys (Columbia University), using data provided by
the World Bank, the Department of Peace and Conflict
Research at Uppsala University and the International
Peace Research Institute, Oslo.
3 Paul Collier. Breaking The Conflict Trap. (Washington, DC:
The World Bank and Oxford University Press, May 2003), p. 3.
4 Paul Collier and Anke Hoeffler. Civil War. (Oxford, England:
University of Oxford, March 2006), p. 24.
5 Paul Collier. Breaking the Conflict Trap, p. 2.
6 2008 Global Trends: Refugees, Asylum-seekers, Returnees, Internally Displaced and Stateless Persons, UN High Commissioner for
Refugees (June 16, 2009), p. 2. Available online at: http://www.
unhcr.org/4a375c426.html (accessed June 11, 2009).
7 Grameen Bank website, available online at http://www.
grameen-info.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id
=16&Itemid=112. Accessed on June 11, 2009.
27
Event Speakers and Participants

Dr. Howard Anderson
Chief, Field Assistance Division
US Peace Corps
Ms. Rachel Blum*
Senior Advisor, Economic Development
CHF International
Ms. Ineba Elizabeth Bob-Manuel
Regional Programs Manager, South
International Foundation for Education
and Self-Help
Major Amy Bumgarner, US Air Force
Graduate Student
US Naval Postgraduate School
Mr. Jeffrey Callahan
Director, Development
Global Majority
Mr. John Calogero
Consultant
Armadillo at Large
* Event speaker
Mr. Norberto Celestino

Senior Program Officer
Emergency and Reintegration Unit
International Organization for Migration
Dr. Wayne Cheatham
Special Assistant to the Surgeon
General US Navy
Ms. Knowledge Chikondo
Operations Director
World Vision Zimbabwe
Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Chisholm,
US Marine Corps*
Civil Affairs Officer, 3rd Civil Affairs Group
US Marine Corps
Lieutenant Jihoon (Perry) Choi, US Navy
Graduate Student
Ms. Erin Cornish
Livelihoods Program Manager
for Aceh, Indonesia
Major Herb Daniels, US Army

Graduate Student
Master Sergeant Miguel Espinoza, US Army
A Company
Civil Military Operations Center
Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge
98th Civil Affairs Battalion
US Army
Lieutenant Kristin Garrott, US Navy
Team 106 Officer in Charge
Maritime Civil Affairs Squadron ONE
US Marine Corps
Staff Sergeant Juan Giraldo, US Army
A Company
Civil Military Operations Center
Non-Commissioned Officer
98th Civil Affairs Battalion
US Army
28
Mr. Paul Greening*

Project Manager
Post-Conflict Community Reintegration
Mr. Andrew Harris
Graduate Student
Mr. Ben Oppenheim*

Research Fellow
University of California, Berkeley
Lieutenant Commander Aaron Park, US Navy
Graduate Student
Naval Postgraduate School
Chief Petty Officer Dennis Harris, US Navy

Team 107 Leading Petty Officer
Maritime Civil Affairs Squadron One
US Navy
Ms. Melanie Peyser

Program Director, Civil Military Initiative
Office of African Affairs
Office of the Secretary of Defense
US Department of Defense
Ms. Sabrina Hill

Logistics Portfolio Manager
Department of Homeland Security
Ms. Georgianna Platt

Regional Advisor, East Central Africa
US Agency for International Development
Ms. Shukuko Koyama*

Socio-economic Reintegration Expert
International Labour Office
Ms. Shannon Rogers

Program Manager, Peace and Security
US Agency for International Development
Mr. Brian Kriz

Safety Nets and Livelihoods Recovery Specialist
Save the Children
Lieutenant Colonel Charles Royer,

US Marine Corps*
Economic Advisor, 3rd Civil Affairs Group
1st Marine Expeditionary Force
US Marine Corps
Dr. Isabel Londono*

Executive Director
Women for Colombia Foundation
Ms. Lana Lynn
West Coast Representative
Center for Humanitarian Cooperation
Mr. Arturo Matute*
Program Specialist on Violence Prevention
United Nations Development Programme
Mr. Maxie Joseph Muwonge
Senior Program Assistant
Information Counseling and Referral
Services, Uganda
Dr. Moyara Ruehsen*

Associate Professor
Monterey Institute for International Studies
Ms. Gwendolyne Sanders
Graduate Student
Chief Petty Officer Daniel Scholler, US Navy
Team 106 Leading Chief Petty Officer
US Navy
Major Sean Sutherland, US Air Force
Graduate Student
Lieutenant Brian Nichols, US Navy

Team 107 Officer in Charge
US Navy
Lieutenant Colonel Carol White, US Army

Civil Affairs Plans Officer
US Special Operations Command
Mr. David Odigie*

Program Officer/Financial Services Specialist
MARKETS
Lieutenant Khalid Woods, US Navy

Graduate Student
* Event speaker
CSRS TEAM
Mr. John Christiansen
Senior Program Advisor
Dr. Nat J. Colletta
Workshop Co-facilitator
Mr. Jesse Darling
Multimedia Designer
Dr. Sophal Ear
Workshop Co-facilitator
Ms. Shukuko Koyamo
Workshop Presenter
Ms. Holly Larson
Report Writer
Mr. Ben Oppenheim
Rapporteur
Ms. Miriam Turlington
Program Assistant
Mr. Nicholas Tomb
Program Coordinator
Mr. Matthew Vaccaro
Program Director
For more information about CSRS, its philosophy, and programs,

please visit www.csrs-nps.org.

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About This Event

The Center for Stabilization and Reconstruction Studies (CSRS) is a

Transforming a War Economy

The Link Between Poverty and Civil War

Researchers have traced the link between poverty

GDP per capita (in US$)

cooperative, risk-taking behavior

Gain familiarity with operational

But the path forward is a rocky

Explore a range of policy and

force reductions begin. Individuals

States must make systemic

Recognizing that host nations face

Getting Back to Work was designed

thinkers Dr. Nat J. Colletta,

Economic recovery is just one

While greed and grievance fuel conflict, proving

The Conflict Environment

Dr. Robert McNab, associate professor, Defense Resources Management Institute,

individuals and groups may be

Individuals, whether perpetrators or victims of

The educator suggested that actors

confiscate the property of Sunni

activity are not present in conflicttorn countries, business partnerships

Sierra-Leone which provided economic

Shannon Rogers, US Agency for International Development (right), shares insights

In Somalia, in particular, one

millions of dollars destroying poppy

Participating in conflict, corruption, or illegal

To change society, one must change

legal forms of employment and invest

As they seek to partner effectively

is not officially recognized, it has a crude centralized banking system

Afghanistan, which reestablished a centralized banking and payments

East Timor, which decided to adopt US currency as its own. That

State Fragility and

One hallmark of a functioning state

Different Types of Social Capital and

VERTICAL SOCIAL CAPITAL

High Social Cohesion

HORIZONTAL SOCIAL CAPITAL

Bonding Social Capital

Low Social Cohesion

47 percent of refugees and asylumseekers were women and girls, while

Implementing the World

Actors can use the framework to

member: There is a total lack of

The World Banks Conflict Analysis Framework

Social and economic

Role of media and

Human rights status

Role of kindred groups

Per capita income

In-country and crossborder competition

Bridging social capital

Employment and access

Oftentimes actors are faced with

Pictured in foreground: Brian Kriz, Save the Children.

Although host government priorities

Pictured: Major Sean Sutherland, US Air Force, shares his insights on

Tapping the Potential

technical and production knowledge,