Envoyer Imprimer Tweeter

The effective and accountable organisation and delivery of security and justice is central to establishing the rule of law, peacebuilding and development. Effective external support for security and justice development is difficult because it is a politically sensitive and complex undertaking. Control over, and access to, security and justice are issues central to any society and hence subject to controversy and diverging interest. Changes touch the foundations of political power and societal and elite interest. Political savvy, long time horizons, dialogue, good contextual understanding, local ownership and an incremental approach are therefore key ingredients for engagement.

Critical challenges remain for donors to provide effective support in this area. These include how to reconcile different geostrategic motives for engagement, how to align support to the available level of /capacity for development and how to engage with non-governmental actors that provide security and justice. Although there is full awareness of the development security nexus, much needs to be done to ensure that the relevant actors within the international community work together closely. Yet improving security and justice is crucial for sustainable peace, the development opportunities of the poor and other vulnerable groups and for realising the Milennium Development Goals. Particularly, women and children suffer disproportionately from the crime, insecurity and fear brought on by bad policing, weak justice and penal systems, and corrupt militaries.

INCAF has developed cutting-edge thinking on security sector reform and is now seeking to identify lessons learned and good practice in the area of security and justice to help the international community improve the quality of its engagement

Recent publications include:

• The challenges of supporting effective security and justice development programming (working paper 2013)
• OECD DAC Handbook on Security System Reform Handbook
  Section 9: Integrating gender awareness and equality (updated 2011) 
  Section 10: Monitoring Section 10: Monitoring and Evaluation (2011)
• State-Provided Service, Contracting Out, and Non-State Networks: Justice and Security as Public and Private Goods and Services (2009)
• SSR - What Have We Learned?

Consult the full list of recent publications in the Conflict & Fragility Series.

Additional links and resources:

United Nations and the Rule of Law

Clingendael Conflict Research Unit

Cranfield Center for Security Sector Management

UNDP BCPR Rule of Law, Justice and Security

International Security Sector Advisory Team

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