STUDY GUIDE UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (UNDP) STATEBUILDING IN AFRICA

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1 STUDY GUIDE UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (UNDP) STATEBUILDING IN AFRICA

2 Whilst the MDGs give us a framework of indicators to aim for, we cannot achieve these targets if we as states do not have the tools to do so. - H.E. Emilia Pires, Minister of Finance, Timor Leste Governance and Institution Building: Lessons from fragile and conflict affected states Monrovia HLP Post 2015 Meeting I. INTRODUCTION While many countries are making progress toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals and the future Sustainable Development Goals, Africa is falling behind. Although it is a very rich continent (in natural resources such as diamonds, salt, gold, among others), states continue to be fragile, and governments and This committee wishes to promote debate in order to make clear which is the correct approach to this problem, in what ways can this committee address fragility and how do we reinforce the programs and institutions that have already been established for this purpose. II. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM According to the International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding, 1.5 billion people are affected by conflict and fragility and about 70% of all states that feature fragility have seen conflict since The transition out of conflict and fragility is compelling for these countries in order to achieve stability and reach the MDGs, but current initiatives have produced limited results. The challenges of transiting out of conflict and fragility are significant, and current ways of working in these environments have generated limited results. 1.5 billion people are affected by conflict and fragility. About 70% of all states that feature fragility have seen conflict since % of ODA is spent in fragile and conflict- affected contexts, but it is volatile and concentrated on just 8 partners. These countries are also furthest institutions continue to struggle with serious security and development challenges for which they need the comprehensive cooperation of the international community. Africa, in academic and in popular media, has been consistently perceived in the international community as the damsel in distress for being a systematically unstable problem- territory. In fact, throughout history, it has been perceived as the most vulnerable region of the world, prey to persistent poverty and lack of political legitimacy. Africa s contemporary situation has been shaped due to a series of historical events such as the slave trade, colonization, civil wars and constant coups which led to a regime of political violence, fail public institutions and hybrid political system. away from achieving the MDGs. We must change our ways of working together. State fragility is considered one of the main reasons why countries cannot achieve the Millennium Development Goals. However, the understanding of contemporary political Africa requires an examination into the legacies of colonialism, slavery, and exploitation that formatively shaped the historical political climates of the continent. By 100,000 BC to 1500 AC, Africa retained hunter- gathering and small political systems into the 16th century. At that time the Sahara Desert was not a desert. It was a green and fertile area. Gradually it grew drier and became a desert. In 642 AC, the Arabs conquered Egypt and soon they controlled all of the coast of North Africa. After 800 AD, organized kingdoms emerged in northern Africa. They traded with the Arabs further north. Arab merchants brought luxury goods and salt. In return they purchased gold and slaves from the Africans. One of the earliest African kingdoms was Ghana. By the 9th century, Ghana was called the land of gold. However, it was destroyed in the 11th century by Africans from further north. In this sense, at the colonial moment,

3 when African and Eurasian world s first entered into conflict, the functionality of African societies did not translate to the capability for self- defense. In many cases, African peoples geologically lacked access to the kind of resources that made complex weapons of war possible. The index shows that at the colonial moment, as many as 25% of Africans lived in stateless societies. Political centralization is important for its capacity to homogenize and nationalize many of the cultural and political identities of residents, the kind of identities that can be mobilized on behalf of the state, whether it be enacting an imperial ordination or resisting one. In the 19th century European states tried to stop the slave trade (Britain banned the slave trade in 1807). On the other hand, in the late 19th century, Europeans colonized most of Africa. In 1884, the Germans took Namibia, Togo and Cameroon, and in 1885 they took Tanzania. Also, Belgium took over what is now Democratic Republic of Congo. By 1914, all of Africa was in European hands except Liberia and Ethiopia. (See Annex 1) However, in the early 20th century, attitudes towards imperialism began to change in Europe. African became impatient for independence, and in the late 1950s and 1960s, most African countries were independent. Today, as we have already mentioned, the economies of most African countries are growing rapidly. Tourism in Africa is booming and investment is pouring into the continent, however the challenge to have sustainable nations still remains. Most African countries are still considered to be fragile nations (which directly threatens the security and wellbeing of populations living within the territory of the state). Despite the advancements, African countries are generally diagnosed with governance crisis. As an example, Zimbabwe has been a visible case of severely poor governance for the ongoing war and widespread violence. Thus, the general impression of having a governance crisis at a continental level is understandable. Nonetheless, there are some scholars that do not agree with this statement wanting to end for once and for all, the impression that Africa continues to be a damsel in distress. III. CURRENT SITUATION While a thorough examination of Africa s history of political organization is relevant and necessary for the purposes of this committee, our ultimate focus is on Africa s contemporary political problems, as well as social and economic problems. Despite claims that Africa is experiencing one of the highest growth rates in the world, growing class divisions and higher consumer prices are having disproportionate impacts on working people and the poor. Countries that are the focus of these reports of phenomenal growth such as Nigeria and Ghana are undergoing internal crises related to the rising cost of living and the necessity to expand government spending on infrastructural development. Thus, Africa stands at a crossroads. Economic growth has taken root across much of the region. Exports are booming, foreign investment is on the rise and dependence on aid is declining. Governance reforms are transforming the political landscape. Democracy, transparency and accountability have given Africa s citizens a greater voice in decisions that affect their lives. These are encouraging developments. Yet the progress in reducing poverty, improving people s lives and putting in place the foundations for more inclusive and sustainable growth has been less impressive. Governments have failed to convert the wealth created by economic growth into the opportunities that all Africans can exploit to build a better future. The time has come to set a course towards more inclusive growth and fairer societies. Some of the problems that continue to be consistently affecting Africa are the following: Very high transport costs and small markets Low productivity in agriculture

4 A very high burden of disease A history of adverse geopolitical situation Dissemination of technology abroad very slow The International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding The International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding was established in 2008 in Accra, as a mean to address the challenges of conflict and fragility. It is the first forum to provide a platform to deliver experience and knowledge sharing from across the world, enable dialogue and a learning environment to identify key opportunities to help build peaceful states. Its Secretariat is hosted by the OECD Development Assistance Committee and it is composed by more than 40 countries and international organizations, including countries affected by conflict and fragility and their international partners which seek to support the transition out of fragility and provide leadership during the peacebuilding process. The New Deal A local sudanese proverb says: Only many hands will move the rock. The compact and the New Deal - is in all simplicity about joining hands. The rocks are heavy. We are building a pyramid. But by working together we can build peace and we can build states, and the true beneficiaries of this will be the people living in fragile states. They deserve so much better, and if allowed they can do so much better. Christian Friis Bach Minister for Development Cooperation, Denmark At the High level side event: New Deal: g7+ Perspectives and Experience 26th September 2012, The United Nations, New York The New Deal is a key agreement developed through the forum of the International Dialogue and signed by more than 40 countries and organizations at the 4th High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness on 30 November 2011, Busan Korea that seeks to change the policy and practice of engagement in conflict- affected and fragile situations. (See Annex 2 for further information) The following are some of the key aspects of this initiative: It establishes five Peacebuilding and Statebuilding Goals (PSGs) as an important foundation to enable progress toward the MDGs, and to guide (inter)national efforts and resources. These five goals are: legitimate politics, security, justice, economic foundations and revenues & services. It sets out new terms of engagement to support country- owned and led transitions out of fragility (FOCUS). It outlines a series of commitments to achieve better results (TRUST). About its implementation: Sierra Leone is using its fragility assessment and PSG indicators to inform the country s One Vision, One Plan and is developing a compact. Chad aligned its 2013/14 National Development Plan to the New Deal, which will serve as the foundation for a compact. South Sudan is finalizing a compact with a development partners with strong focus on the use of country systems, and improving transparency of resource flows. Liberia conducted a fragility assessment and is focusing on improving transparency in natural resource management. IV. POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS We need to transform the way we all engage with fragile and conflict affected states. That's the message from our own research and also from heeding the calls for a "New Deal" from an innovative coalition of fragile countries

5 across Africa, Asia and the Pacific, known as the g7+. So what does it take? Jim Yong Kim - President, World Bank Group As stated by Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group, understanding the drivers of fragility and conflict should be the first approach in order to tackle fragility: is it driven by an abusive state power, the scarcity of natural resources, the diversity of a nation s people? Each situation is unique and therefore, the task is to understand what drives conflicts, in order to propose effective solutions, to step up efforts and lift these fragile states out of their fragility. After understanding whether the conflict is about, it is necessary to move towards effective initiatives that deliver early results, such as creation of jobs, health and reinforcement of the private sector. This initiatives should not only be focused on the long- term but also on providing quick wins in order to achieve public trust in building institutions and should be set in coordination with the different stakeholders between regional, national and local levels as a mean to achieve cohesive efforts towards development assistance. Foreign Aid After a crisis of legitimacy throughout the 1990s, aid is popular again in the policy community. Several new studies have suggested that at least a doubling of overseas development assistance (ODA) from 2000 levels is necessary as a precondition for meeting international development targets. The Commission for Africa (2005) chaired by British Prime Minister Tony Blair called for an immediate $25 billion increase in aid to sub- Saharan Africa, with an additional $25 billion to come by This would constitute roughly a tripling of aid to the continent. Further, the UN s Millennium Project (2005) has estimated that global ODA will need to rise even further than the previous estimates, reaching at least $195 billion by 2015 from current levels of some $79 billion in These calls for more ODA are echoed in various parts of the United Nations system, the World Bank, many NGOs, recipient countries, and even some European governments. Many of the low- income countries targeted for substantial increases in aid already receive historically unprecedented flows. The Anti- Aid Approach Several new studies suggest that aid not necessarily promotes economic development, neither the reinforcement of state capacity nor the development of public institutions. This aid paradox finds its origin in the fact that public institutions are fulfilled with neo- patrimonial tendencies. Therefore, it can diminish institutional development, create an anti- developmental effect of incentives to reinforce the local institutions and diminish the government s performance. Also, the Anti- Aid approach states that Africa, as the continent most aid dependent, has failed to achieved economic development due to its political dynamics such as the systematic clientelism and the private appropriation of state resources for political ends, in which elites, as a mean to stay in power, have used internal and external resources (aid) for their own economic and political interests. It will be the responsibility of this committee to consider the role that international aid should or should not play in state development, and whether national governments outside of Africa have a duty to regulate or influence the way aid organizations operate in the countries in which they work. Generally, aid efforts like the ones mentioned are from a non- African voice, although some organizations are moving towards more inclusive work. Even still, much debate persists about whether aid programs contribute to misconception and disempowerment of African citizens, or if aid is the best tool the international community has for bolstering democracy and development in Africa.

6 African Aid and its Implication for Statebuilding Delegates may want to pay particular attention to the ways in which international humanitarian work in Africa affects efforts undertaken by local and national governments to solve the same problems. In one perspective, aid programs and NGOs undercut the political pressure on governments to be responsive to the needs of citizens. What are the implications when service delivery becomes dependent on the work of a fractionalized network of NGOs, each operating with particular interests that supersede a commitment to a country s development? Another perspective, however, balks at the idea that NGOs abroad should abstain from addressing dire humanitarian and security concerns merely out of respect for the sovereignty of governments that respond insufficiently. A large factor in determining government- NGO relations is whether an aid organization strives to create independently- operating services, or whether aid is coordinated through national or local governments. The pros and cons of each have substantial implications for statebuilding processes. V. CONCLUSION It becomes impossible to reflect on the questions of statebuilding in Africa without a thoughtful consideration of what has already been built, physically and metaphorically, in African countries across the continent, as well as the logics that have constructed it s past and laid out the designs on its future. Delegates should seek not to linearly identify Africa s problems and solutions, but to understand the richness of its history, the complexity of its regions, countries, and identities, and how to better align its political systems with forward- thinking notions of development and human rights. VI. QUESTIONS A RESOLUTION MUST ANSWER (QARMA) Any resolution considered for application must answer the following questions: 1. How can we redefine the goals of African statebuilding? 2. What is the role of the international community to address the problems experienced in the continent? 3. What s the role of the national governments in Africa towards achieving the PSGs? 4. Should the central point of statebuilding lie at the international (ex. UN), regional (ex. AU), or domestic level? 5. Is foreign aid crucial towards achieving statebuilding in African countries? 1. RESEARCH VII. GETTING PREPARED The success of your experience in VMMUN will depend heavily on how much preparation you put in before the conference actually begins. Although research may not seem like the most fun or exciting activity leading up to a conference, if you put in the effort it will definitely pay off during the conference. You will be more knowledgeable, more prepared, and more confident to deal with whatever comes your way. As you perform your research, you may want to keep a page of notes on key facts, figures, policies, and other important information. Bring a copy of your notes to the conference to refer to when needed (especially if you will not have readily available internet access). 2. POSITIONS PAPERS A Position Paper is a policy statement in which delegates clarify the committee topics, state their representative s position, and suggest solutions that fall in

7 line with their national stance. Before VMMMUN begins, each delegation is responsible for writing a position paper for the benefit of the conference staff and more importantly their fellow delegates. The general format of position papers is one to two pages for each topic area, single spaced, with size twelve Times New Roman font. Please make sure to cite every source that you reference in your position paper. As a general guide, it is always good use your position paper to answer the questions that your chair asks in the background guide. Position Papers always should begin with a header stating the Country/Position that the delegation is representing, the committee, the delegates names and school, and the topic area being discussed in that section. 3. RULES OF PROCEDURE The Rules of Procedure will guide the delegate s participation throughout the debate. They contain the rules governing the debate, speeches, points and documents, as well as the rules governing the vote. The Rules of Procedure may be found in the following source: 6f a78f6421b6a?AccessKeyId=10 D67498F310E30965C7&disposition=0&all oworigin=1 Nevertheless, delegates shall bear in mind that the Secretariat or the Committee Directors may provide variations to these rules. In the event of a conflict, those rules will always take precedence over the ones referred to in the precedent paragraph. 4. WRITING RESOLUTIONS The purpose of the debate, as stated in our philosophy, is to produce a comprehensive and pragmatic solution to the topic embodied in a document called a resolution. The process for producing a resolution consists of two main written stages: the working paper and the draft resolution. Working papers are a point of reference for discussion in committee by containing concrete ideas on the topic under discussion. They do not require a specific format and may contain signatories. In contrast, draft resolutions are a formal document in which a committee determines the actions to be taken in order to solve the problems under discussion. VIII. DISCLAIMER This study guide has been created for educational purposes only, and meant to be used exclusively for Villa Maria Model United Nations (VMMUN) The authors of this study guide claim no copyright nor any kind of intellectual property or legal right for the content of this document. However, this document may not be distributed or reproduced without the express written consent of its authors.

8 ANNEX 1 Independence of African Countries

9 ANNEX 2 The New Deal