9 December 2013: A joint report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) urges states, intergovernmental organizations and other actors to accelerate the incorporation of natural resource management into post-conflict reintegration programmes.

The report, titled ‘The Role of Natural Resources in Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration: Addressing Risks and Seizing Opportunities,’ highlights opportunities to harness natural resources, including minerals, timber, gas and timber, in reintegration and recovery efforts in order to bring about sustainable peace and mitigate potential conflicts.

The report notes that the peace negotiations and disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) programmes that comprise the UN’s post-conflict peace consolidation efforts often exclude the fair management and distribution of natural resources. It further notes that, with one-third of UN peacekeeping operations taking place in areas driven by conflicts over natural resources, DDR programmes frequently fail to deliver: critical contributions to safety and security; provision of basic services; restoration of government functions through resource rights, land use, concessions, wealth sharing, markets and trade; inclusive political processes; and economic revitalization, employment and livelihoods.

Underlining such missed opportunities, Jordan Ryan, UNDP, stated that “natural resources need to be managed properly as part of a well thought-out peace process,” adding that “access to land needs to be taken into consideration, especially for vulnerable groups, such as women, who play a particularly important role as they are primarily responsible for providing food, water and other basic resources for households.”

The report offers a set of recommendations to address these needs, by, inter alia: the incorporation of ties between natural resources and armed forces in DDR programmes; targeted opportunities for infrastructure rehabilitation; avoidance of maladaptive coping strategies through sustainable livelihoods; gender-responsive approaches to all natural resource-related issues; and improved coordination between the UN and national and regional authorities. [UNEP Press Release] [UNDP Press Release] [Publication: The Role of Natural Resources in Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration]