Power, livelihoods and conflict: case studies in political economy analysis for humanitarian action
What analytical tools can humanitarian agencies use to understand complex emergencies? What insights does political economy analysis produce for humanitarian interventions? This report documents the findings of an Overseas Development Institute study of four conflict environments in 2001-2: Afghanistan, the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone and the Casamance in Senegal.
It argues that humanitarian operations must be based on sound understanding of their respective social, political and economic environments, and of the role their operations play. A political economy analysis reveals that historical, regional and international perspectives are crucial to understanding complex emergencies, and that war economies, formal and survival economies are closely interconnected. The report further suggests that:
- a close examination of changing livelihoods reveals much of what relief agencies need to know about the political economy; but ways of coping with conflict vary widely according to location, security regimes, strength of local governance and social networks
- livelihood strategies of different groups interact, and some groups gain at others' expense - participating in violence may itself represent a livelihood strategy. People are most vulnerable when their livelihoods are deliberately blocked or undermined.
The report suggests that the most significant challenge to aid agencies is institutional. Efforts should be made to:
- integrate political economy analysis into the assessment frameworks they are already using, including household economy and livelihoods analysis
- ensure individual knowledge becomes institutionalised by information sharing within and between organisations, and to ensure that analysis is effectively linked to field level operations.
