Veto Players in Post-Conflict DDR Programs: Evidence from Nepal and the DRC

Under what conditions are Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) programs successfully implemented following intrastate conflict? Previous research is dominated by under-theorized case studies that lack the ability to detect the precise factors and mechanisms that lead to successful DDR. In this article, we draw on game theory and ask how the number of veto players, their policy distance, and their internal cohesion impact DDR implementation. Using empirical evidence from Nepal and the Democratic Republic of Congo, we show that the number of veto players, rather than their distance and cohesion, explains the (lack of) implementation of DDR

Making energy efficiency pro-poor : insights from behavioural economics for policy design

This paper reviews the current state of behavioural economics and its applications to energy efficiency in developing countries. Taking energy efficient lighting in Ghana, Uganda and Rwanda as empirical examples, this paper develops hypotheses on how behavioural factors can improve energy efficiency policies directed towards poor populations. The key argument is that different types of affordability exist that are influenced by behavioural factors to varying degrees. Using a qualitative approach, this paper finds that social preferences, framing and innovative financing solutions that acknowledge people’s mental accounts can provide useful starting points. Behavioural levers are only likely to work in a policy package that addresses wider technical, market and institutional barriers to energy efficiency. More research, carefully designed pre-tests and stakeholder debates are required before introducing policies based on behavioural insights. This is imperative to avoid the dangers of nudging

When do disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration programmes succeed?

One of the problems in post-war societies is finding ways of convincing former combatants to hand in their weapons and reintegrate into civil society. In an attempt to facilitate the transition from war to peace, DDR (disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration) programmes have become key components of national and international efforts to pacify post-conflict societies. Assisting fighters to gain a foothold in civil society is thought to prevent them from returning to combat and hence to avoid a resumption of hostilities in the long run. In line with sustained investments in DDR programmes, as well as with a noteworthy increase in the number and scope of such programmes, a growing – albeit relatively small – body of literature is attempting to catch up with these developments. In an effort to gather what we know about the factors that contribute to the success of DDR programmes, this discussion paper provides a synthesis of the current literature. While emphasising the emerging body of quantitative research, it also draws on reports by practitioners and in-depth case studies in response to two critical questions: How effective are DDR programmes? What factors and circumstances contribute to or impede their success? Analytically, this paper thereby locates findings in the literature at three levels: the macro level, i.e. context-specific factors; the meso level, i.e. programme factors; the micro level, i.e. individual factors

The Civil Peace Service: Initial opportunities for university graduates ; results of a conference at the University of Tuebingen

Die Deutsche Stiftung Friedensforschung (DSF) veranstaltete gemeinsam mit der Abteilung Internationale Beziehungen/Friedens- und Konfliktforschung des Instituts für Politikwissenschaft der Universität Tübingen im November 2007 die Tagung „Berufsfelder für zivile Friedensfachkräfte - Voraussetzungen und Einstiegsmöglichkeiten“. Die Veranstaltung war ein Teil des Rahmenprogramms, welches den Gastaufenthalt der vom Forum Ziviler Friedensdienst e.V. konzi-pierten Wanderausstellung „Frieden braucht Fachleute“ in Tübingen begleitete. Die Tagung war in erster Linie eine Berufsinformationsveranstaltung für Studierende der Friedens- und Konfliktforschung, die sich für das Arbeitsfeld des Zivilen Friedensdienstes (ZFD) interessieren. Darüber hinaus war es den Organisatoren ein Anliegen, den TeilnehmerInnen Beschäftigungsmöglichkeiten und Wege zum Berufseinstieg im Bereich der zivilen Konfliktbearbeitung aufzuzeigen.The German Foundation for Peace Research (DSF) organized jointly with the Department of International Politics/Peace- and Conflict Research at the Institute of Political Science at the University of Tuebingen in November 2007 the conference "professional fields for civilian peacekeeping staff - conditions and opportunities." The event was part of the support program of the traveling exhibition "Peace needs professionals" in Tuebingen. The meeting was primarily a professional briefing for students of peace and conflict research, which are interested for the work of the Civil Peace Service (ZFD). In addition, it was a concern for the organizers, to show the participants employment opportunities and career paths in the field of civilian conflict transformation

Ordered Rape : A Principal–Agent Analysis of Wartime Sexual Violence in the DR Congo

Policy makers and academics often contend that organizational anarchy permits soldiers to perpetrate sexual violence. A recent United Nations report supports this thesis especially with regard to the massive sexual abuse in the Congolese civil war. We challenge the anarchy argument and maintain, based on a principal-agent framework, that opportunistic military commanders can order their soldiers to rape through the use of sanctions and rewards. Our qualitative and quantitative analysis of a survey of 96 Congolese ex-soldiers shows that ordered rape is more likely in organizations where soldiers fear punishment and in which commanders distribute drugs as stimulants

Autocratic angels? Democratic demons? The impact of regime type, state capacity and economic development on reaching environmental targets

This paper analyses whether variances in effective environmental policies that lead to achieving environmental targets can be attributed to the different types of political regimes, the level of a state’s economic development, or its state capacity. Our analysis is based on a cross-sectional time-series dataset including around 132 countries and covering the period from 2000 to 2010. Our dependent variable is the Ecosystem Vitality index of the 2012 Environmental Performance Index (EPI). Against our assumption, we do not find consistent evidence that democratic regimes outperform autocratic ones when it comes to reaching environmental targets. The level of state capacity as such plays a rather unclear role where higher state capacity does not automatically translate into better environmental protection. However, democratic states with increasing capacity are less harmful to the environment than autocratic states with increasing capacity. The level of economic development on the other hand turns out as the best predictor for environmental performance: Environmental targets are less likely to be reached while economies are developing but, once a threshold has been passed, economic development starts to become positively correlated with environmental friendliness. The effect of economic development is more pronounced for democracies than for autocracies: people’s preferences in a democracy seem to be more influenced by economic development than the preferences of autocratic leaders