Development Cooperation for Post-Conflict Fragile States: A Critical Examination and Future Perspectives

Abstract

In 2011, a New Deal for Engagement in Fragile States (the New Deal) was agreed between the International Network on Conflict and Fragility (INCAF), a subsidiary body of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), and the g7+, a voluntary association of countries that are or have been affected by conflict. The New Deal is expected to be a new framework for aid coordination between fragile states and DAC donors. It attempts to achieve Peace Building and State Building Goals as a precondition to realize the Millennium Development Goals and further the Sustainable Development Goals. Seven countries, including Afghanistan, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Timor Leste, together with other voluntary countries undertook the New Deal between 2012 and 2015 as a trial period.

A majority of existing studies on aid effectiveness in fragile states reviews donor-recipient relations and addresses problems within fragile states, such as lack of capacity and bad governance. However, these studies cannot explain as to why a country like Somalia made significant progress in undertaking the New Deal while the DRC made less progress. Therefore this article explored the donor-recipient relations of the New Deal within a wider framework of the international cooperation system, where multiple donor countries, aid agencies, ministries of recipient countries, non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders from the private sector and aid organizations are included. By exploring the aid coordination of the New Deal within the framework, this article revealed that recipient’s incentive to carry out the New Deal is significantly influenced by various actors in the international development system. This is because multiple actors including non-DAC countries provide various development opportunities to fragile states in the current world. Therefore, it is crucial to review the New Deal within the international development system so as to find a way to increase the incentive of the recipient countries.

This article argues that in order to attain firm commitment by fragile states, it is critical for the New Deal to be discussed and institutionalized in a wider global context. The recognition and support of the New Deal still remain within DAC members and its partners. However, countries outside DAC, particularly emerging donors, such as Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRICs), are less likely to support the New Deal because they do not share the fundamental idea of the New Deal. Therefore, only the countries that support the DAC approach or the countries that have no alternative choice will undertake the New Deal, unless the New Deal is institutionalized in such an international forum as the United Nations.