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Introduction to livelihoods, conflict and disasters

Supporting sustainable livelihoods: a critical review of assistance in post-conflict situations

A look at how the livelihoods approach can address post-conflict situations



Authors: J. Clover; R. Cornwell
Publisher: Institute for Security Studies, South Africa, 2004

Full text of document

What are the advantages and limitations of a livelihoods approach in post-conflict situations? How can the approach be developed to address insecurity? This publication takes a detailed look at how far a sustainable livelihoods (SL) approach in post-conflict situations can address long-term security and poverty issues in Africa. It builds on a workshop held in 2003 by the African Security Analysis Programme of the Institute for Security Studies. It generates a number of insights into the framework and what users need to be particularly alert to in situations of chronic conflict, and temporarily or newly ‘secure’ environments.

The authors suggest that while the SL approach requires new ways of thinking about institutional and organisational arrangements for development, it provides a compelling framework for overcoming the structural problems constraining the reconstruction of war-torn economies. Issues for attention within SL in post-conflict situations include that:

  • livelihoods community-level perspective should not obscure power relationships within the community, or how ‘participation’ can be used for legitimisation by elite groups
  • sustainable livelihoods needs to take into account the role of political assets and learn to work with different forms of patrimonialism, which can be especially significant survival strategies in conflict situations
  • livelihoods data is often difficult to gather in conflict situations, and since livelihoods are volatile information can date quickly.

Issues for post-conflict aid agency policy include that:

  • it is important to link development and peace initiatives so that they simultaneously address the material conditions of violence and empower people to resolve their conflicts peacefully
  • aid agencies must incorporate local beneficiaries in the planning and implementation process of projects
  • post-conflict situations need flexible and long-term frameworks to sustain the peace process, and new and integrated responses.