Book
Making Peace Work

The Challenges of Social and Economic Reconstruction

Reconstruction from conflict is a complex and demanding task, and a major challenge for post-conflict countries as well as the international community. Countries and their donor partners face multiple priorities – rebuilding infrastructure, assisting war-damaged communities, and re-creating weakened institutions – with too few resources to meet these needs. Moreover, if the poor are not prioritized then the end of war may have saved lives, but will have done little for livelihoods. And women are often left behind. Without reconstruction, countries may easily regress back to war. This book provides an insight into some of the principal issues that arise in post-conflict economic and social reconstruction, and offers examples of what works, and what does not. Each chapter tackles a key theme, and illustrates the with illustrations from a wide selection of countries.

Table of contents
  1. The Multi-Dimensional Challenge of Mass Violent Conflict
    Tony Addison, Tilman Brück
  2. Achieving Peace, Participation and Prosperity
    Tony Addison, Tilman Brück
  3. Economic Agendas in Civil Wars: What We Know, What We Need to Know
    David M. Malone, Heiko Nitzschke
    More Working Paper | Economic Agendas in Civil Wars
  4. The Coherence of Democratic Peace Building
    Peter J. Burnell
    More Working Paper | The Coherence of Democratic Peace-Building
  5. Ethics, Rhetoric and Politics of Post-Conflict Reconstruction: How Can the Concept of Social Contract Help Us in Understanding How to Make Peace Work?
    Sirkku K. Hellsten
    More Working Paper | Ethics, Rhetoric and Politics of Post-conflict Reconstruction
  6. The Gender Dimensions of Post-Conflict Reconstruction: The Challenges in Development Aid
    Marcia E. Greenberg, Elaine Zuckerman
    More Working Paper | The Gender Dimensions of Post-Conflict Reconstruction
  7. Policies towards Horizontal Inequalities in Post-Conflict Reconstruction
    Frances Stewart
    More Working Paper | Policies towards Horizontal Inequalities in Post-Conflict Reconstruction
  8. Post-Conflict Countries: Strategy for Rebuilding Fiscal Institutions
    Sanjeev Gupta, Shamsuddin Tareq, Benedict J. Clements, Alex Segura-Ubiergo, Rina Bhattacharya
    More Working Paper | Postconflict Countries
  9. Rehabilitating Health Systems in Post-Conflict Situations
    Hugh Waters, Brinnon Garrett, Gilbert Burnham
    More Working Paper | Rehabilitating Health Systems in Post-Conflict Situations
  10. Infrastructure Development in Post-Conflict Reconstruction
    Prathivadi Bhayankaram Anand
    More Working Paper | Getting Infrastructure Priorities Right in Post-Conflict Reconstruction
  11. Entrepreneurship, Post-Conflict
    Wim Naudé
    More Working Paper | Peace, Prosperity, and Pro-Growth Entrepreneurship
  12. A Way Forward
    Tony Addison, Tilman Brück
Show all
Endorsements

'Tony Addison and Tilman Brück's Making Peace Work, drawing on leading authorities on the political economy of war and peace, is the definitive volume on how to establish peace, participation, and prosperity in post-conflict societies. A major theme of contributors is war as both a breakdown of moral values and a disruption of property rights. The book emphasizes that reconstruction requires addressing moral, social, and economic concerns.' - E. Wayne Nafziger, University Distinguished Professor of Economics & Editor, Journal of African Development, Kansas State University

'A welcome interdisciplinary look at some of the most critical yet little understood issues post-conflict countries face. At the same time it challenges the international community to consider both the potential tensions and synergies of the peace-participation-prosperity triumvirate.' - Borany Penh, conflict observer and international development expert

'This volume offers a sober – and sobering – account of the challenges of pursuing the distinct but deeply interwoven goals of peace, prosperity, and participation.' - James K. Boyce, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), Program on Development, Peacebuilding, and the Environment

'… an authoritative and comprehensive assessment of the social and economic challenges of rebuilding war-torn countries, written by an outstanding group of scholars and practitioners. It does not dodge the tough questions. It is an essential guide for all those who are interested in peacebuilding.' - Abiodun Williams, Vice President, Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention, United States Institute of Peace, Washington DC

'This volume provides convincing evidence that unless the nature and causes of conflicts are well understood the priorities for overcoming conflicts turn out ineffective and implementation of re-building actions become deficient. The book implicitly points at the need for new ways of how development agents, peace enforcing military, government and judiciary can and must come together to be more effective. There are a lot of synergies between investment for peace and investment for poverty and hunger reduction.' - Joachim von Braun, Director General of the International Food Policy Research Institute

'Despite the large emergence of literature addressing the causes and consequences of conflict, research on how to deal with the post-conflict era is relatively scarce. However, the end of the conflict is not a sufficient condition for a peaceful post-conflict era. This book is a stimulating compilation of relevant research drawing attention on the many dimensions that need to be dealt with after a conflict ends.' - Ana María Ibáñez Londoño, Director, Center for Economic Research, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá