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NORGLOBAL-Norge - Global partner

Decentralization as a strategy for resolving conflict?

Tildelt: kr 3,6 mill.

For several decades governments in developing countries have placed spatial decentralization of responsibilities and resources to lower levels of government high on their political agenda. The principal objectives of decentralization have been down-sizing of central governments, responsive service delivery and increased popular participation in community development to facilitate development in poor and disadvantaged areas. Over the last decade, however, decentralization as a conflict management tool, par ticularly in multi-ethnic societies, has come to the forefront not only in the form of federal solutions, but also in the form of local government reforms and regional autonomy schemes in unitary states. The objective of the study is to assess the conflic t escalating and conflict mitigating impact of decentralization in the context of three long-standing wars in Asia (Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Philippines) where the government has introduced decentralization reforms and self-government schemes to meet dema nds from rebel groups. The proposed study seeks to assess whether and how decentralization helped in producing a "peace dividend" in the form of development of disadvantaged and poor regions, how decentralization met the demands of rebel groups, and how c ontextual factors impacted on the implementation of decentralization efforts. The study shall integrate a gender perspective and draw on UN Resolution 1325 in its analysis of gender issues. Norway has been involved in peace facilitation or in providing de velopment aid in the three countries and the study aims to assess donor support for decentralization and to summarize lessons learnt from the experiences of bilateral and multi-lateral donors in this area. The study will be carried out together with partn ers form Nepal, the Philippines and Sri Lanka and with associated European partners.

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NORGLOBAL-Norge - Global partner