Piombo, Jessica R.

The proposed project seeks to improve both the theory and practice of how peace is achieved in post-conflict countries by disentangling the related goals of peace- and state-building. It does so by focusing on the ability of three post-conflict states to provide public services at the local level and by attempting to understand how externally led peace-building interventions compare with more autonomous and domestically motivated peace processes in achieving sustainable peace and improvements in state capacity. To these ends, we propose a study that varies the “degree of aidedness” of peace- and state-building initiatives, selecting country cases that enable both a cross-national comparison (Cambodia and Laos) and an intertemporal comparison (Uganda in two distinct time periods). We further enhance our analytical leverage by focusing on outcomes at the subnational and sectorial levels, where the tangible results of peace- and state-building can be best observed. The proposed research thus supports the Minerva Initiative topic 2, “Models of societal resilience and change,” and we will deliver a series of policy implications of interest to the United States government and other agencies involved in national defense and the internation peace-building endeavor.
National Security Affairs
Office of Naval Research
Navy
2016