Columbia International Affairs Online: Policy Briefs

CIAO DATE: 06/2013

Civilian capacity in the aftermath of conflict – a case study of OPEN

Diana Felix da Costa, Søren Vester Haldrup, John Karlsrud, Frederik Rosén, Kristoffer Nilaus Tarp

May 2013

Danish Institute for International Studies

Abstract

This policy brief calls attention to the IGAD Initiative in South Sudan as a capacity development project that offers important lessons learned for the international state and peace-building community. The initiative embodies many of the recommendations found in recent UN and OECD recommendations regarding the provision of civilian capacity in the aftermath of conflict. In the United Nations context, the issue of civilian capacity re-emerged as a priority when the UN Secretary-General’s 2009 report on ‘Peacebuilding in the Immediate Aftermath of Conflict’ concluded that “a review needs to be undertaken analysing how the UN and the international community can help to broaden and deepen the pool of civilian experts to support the immediate capacity development needs of countries emerging from conflict”.