State Failure and Local Governance
in Afghanistan and Somalia/Somaliland
A lot of research has been devoted to understanding the origins,
causes and contributing factors of state failure and collapse, particularly
in respect to Somalia and Afghanistan.
By comparison, the often simultaneous, local or regional formation
of new governance structures has received little attention. The
authorities taking over when states fail, and ultimately collapse,
include the actors of war, such as military faction leaders; but
they also include remnants of the former state administration, revitalised
traditional authorities, religious courts, local businessmen, etc.,
who continue or begin to exercise authority as "functional
equivalents" of the former state, at times aspiring to replace
it.
The comparative research project aims at contributing to the understanding
of the local, regional and national formation of governance structures
after state collapse. From a basic research perspective, the primary
interest is in the social processes driving the "survival"
and reconfiguration of former state institutions and traditional
authorities, the sub-ordination and transformation of powerful actors
of violence (warlords, militia, former government army), and the
dynamics of governance structures emerging in the virtual or effective
absence of a state. More specifically, the goal is to explain the
patterns of interaction between these diverse and partly competing
actors both from within the governance structure and its social
and institutional embeddedness.
Furthermore, the project will produce policy-relevant findings helping
to understand the functional logic of governance structures, including
the differences between their localised realities. In practical
terms, this goal may also be advanced by the development of an applicable
analysis framework for governance structures, which could prove
useful in the identification of potential project partners and entry
points for external interventions.
Overall, the project intends to contribute to the adaptation of
peace building and good governance concepts to the context of collapsed
states.
|
