Violent conflict represents not only a significant barrie r to
development; it also wipes out efforts to improve the situation.
Experience from many developing countries has shown that
Community Driven Development (CDD) programmes have
been particularly effective in establishing or expanding
essential social services and physical infrastructure at the local
level. However, using CDD approaches in a conflict context as
a means in post-war rehabilitation represents new challenges.
When carried out in contexts of past or persistent conflict,
CDD projects are confronted with some major challenges:
•communities where projects are set may be deeply
divided;
•power is unequally distributed;
•lines between combatants and civilians may be
blurred;
•a need to address past traumas may give rise to calls
for inquiries or trials; and
•economic recovery and basic services may be urgently
needed.
Nonetheless, the point of departure in this paper commissioned
by the CDD unit of the Environmentally and Socially
Sustainable Development (ESSD) Network of the World Bank,
is that participatory and demand-led development approaches
might potentially address three critical concerns in conflict
contexts:
•The need for speedy and cost-effective delivery of
reconstruction assistance.
•The need to improve the state-citizen relationship.
•The need to create alternative forms of community
organisation that foster reconciliation between
factions of the society
