Bruce Jones and I have just published a new paper called Back to Basics: The UN and crisis diplomacy in an age of strategic uncertainty. We’ve set out to challenge the notion that conflict prevention should be all about sustainable development and promoting good governance. Instead, there should be a stronger focus on politics:
The UN should adopt a conflict prevention strategy that: (i) concentrates on the political dimensions and short-term drivers of violence rather than focusing too heavily on efforts to transform the social and economic “root causes” of violence; (ii) prioritizes the development of anticipatory relationships with decision-makers in countries at risk of conflict to permit rapid engagement when violence escalates; and (iii) promotes closer operational ties with other potential mediators, even where this explicitly involves the UN taking a secondary supporting or facilitating role.
This may sound pretty low-key. Back in 2008, I blogged about a “new minimalism” at the UN as officials stepped back from grand visions of state-building. Our report is in that vein. But with aid budgets under pressure, and growing competition for influence in places like the Congo, a minimalist approach may be the only option.
