Dili Declaration 2010: A New Vision for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding

Preamble

We, the representatives of developing countries, bilateral and multilateral partners and civil society, met in Dili on 9-10 April 2010. We welcome the International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding as an innovation in the international system where countries experiencing conflict and fragility and development partners can jointly shape and guide international assistance to support peacebuilding and statebuilding.

This Declaration builds on the g7+ statement agreed in Dili on 8 April 2010 (see Annex).We reaffirm our commitment to the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, the Principles for Good International Engagement in Fragile States and Situations and the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA).

Conflict and fragility are a major obstacle for achieving the MDGs. We recognize that it will be extremely difficult to achieve the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) in most fragile and conflict-affected states by 2015. We urgently need to address conflict and fragility by supporting country-led peacebuilding and statebuilding processes. To improve the impact of our efforts we will take immediate actions and develop an International Action Plan on peacebuilding and statebuilding.

Peacebuilding and statebuilding goals

Our collective vision is to end and prevent conflict and to contribute to the development of capable, accountable states which respond to the expectations and needs of their populations, in particular the needs of vulnerable and excluded groups, women, youth and children. We recognize the centrality of state-society relations in supporting the development of capable, accountable and responsive states. This will require sustained efforts by all stakeholders to improve governance, strengthen economic and social development, and promote peace and security as outlined in the statement by the g7+.

In order to translate this vision into reality and to guide our collective engagement, we identify the following peacebuilding and statebuilding goals, as stepping stones to achieve progress on development:

• » Foster inclusive political settlements and processes, and inclusive political dialogue
  » Establish and strengthen basic safety and security
  » Achieve peaceful resolution of conflicts and access to justice
  » Develop effective and accountable government institutions to facilitate service delivery
  » Create the foundations for inclusive economic development, including sustainable livelihoods, employment and effective management of natural resources
  » Develop social capacities for reconciliation and peaceful coexistence
  » Foster regional stability and co-operation.

We recognize that priorities to achieve these goals will be different in each country. They should be set at country level through a process that engages all stakeholders, especially women and civil society.

Challenges to achieving peacebuilding and statebuilding goals

Among the challenges identified through national consultations, we are particularly concerned about:

• » Lack of a shared vision for change among key stakeholders that is based on consultations with citizens and civil society. Lack of context analysis and conflict analysis

Lack of trust between developing countries and development partners

Too many overlapping plans and weak alignment of donors behind a unified national plan. Lack of agreement on the need to address shifting and long-term priorities at the same time.

Approaches which focus on the capital and certain regions, creating pockets of exclusions and engaging only a few central state actors in the executive.

• » Insufficent attention to the protection of women and children from armed conflict and to the participation of women in peacebuilding and statebuilding.
• » Insufficient attention to economic growth and job creation, particularly for youth.
• » Unrealistic timeframes for reform, weak capacity to implement plans and limited effectiveness of capacity development approaches.

The need to strengthen linkages between development, security, justice and good governance. Lack of data and reliable statistics to inform planning for peacebuilding and statebuilding.

Insufficient flexibility, speed and predictability of transition financing and limited effectiveness of existing instruments.

Actions for effective support to peacebuilding and statebuilding

The following actions can help accelerate progress on statebuilding and peacebuilding and deepen the implementation of the Paris Declaration, the AAA and the Principles for Good International Engagement if implemented today. Beginning now, we commit ourselves to:

• 1. Set up a mechanism to enable the g7+ partner country meetings to continue.
  2. Formulate international peacebuilding and statebuilding goals based on this Declaration.
  3. Develop a long-term vision to guide the development transformation.
  4. Ensure that national development plans integrate peacebuilding and statebuildinggoals, set clear priorities that can adapt to evolvingcircumstances.
  5. Map the allocation of in-country government and international resources across regions and social groups to ensure equity and prevent exclusion.
  6. Initiate in-country joint reviews of the impact of development partners’ hiring and procurement procedures on the local economy and labour market, as well as local capacity.
  7. Initiate discussion with expert institutions on the development of national statistical capacities.
  8. Where there is no UN mission, agree a lead development partner co-ordination arrangement at country-level to drive co-operation and policy dialogue with government on development priorities, and establish clear terms of reference to deliver on the arrangement, in line with the Paris Declaration and AAA.

We will report back on the status of delivering these immediate actions at the next meeting of the International Dialogue early in 2011.

An International Action Plan on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding

Delivering more effective support to peacebuilding and statebuilding will require a change in approach. To this end we commit to develop an International Action Plan between now and HLF 4. The Action Plan will respond to the goals and challenges identified in the national consultations.

We agree that the Action Plan will give special attention to four areas and focus specifically on the relevance to fragile and conflict-affected states:

1. Capacity development: Develop recommendations for improving and harmonising support to capacity development, recognizing the critical contribution of South-South co-operation. Recommendations will also address how to avoid policies that undermine the capacity of developing countries and support statebuilding.

2. Aid instruments: Improve the way aid is delivered to ensure rapid and flexibile delivery and transition towards government led delivery through country systems.

3. Planning processes: Improve the process for ensuring that developing countries peacebuilding and statebuilding priorities and constraints are identified, that feasible plans are prepared and that development partners align to them.

4. Political Dialogue: Improve the way peacebuilding and statebuilding are part of political dialogue between developing countries and development partners, and how political dialogue in-country can ensure better state-society relations and the building of trust between state and citizens. This could address the role of media and communications at the national, sub-national and global levels.

Particular attention will be given to the issue of gender equality and the role of women, and the potential of youth in all of the areas above. We will deliver this work programme through a range of mechanisms to be further defined. Participation in these mechanisms will include developing countries, development partners and civil society.

We will work through the International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding to deliver this International Action Plan at the Fourth High Level Forum in the Republic of Korea in November 2011.

Informing other processes and increasing participation

We will feed the results from the International Dialogue country consultations and this meeting into other on-going processes to improve the impact on peacebuilding and statebuilding. This will include the Peacebuilding Commission Review, the implementation of the UN Secretary General’s Report on Peacebuilding, the MDG Review Summit and the International Network on Conflict and Fragility (INCAF).

We commit to continue this dialogue and to expand participation to other countries and stakeholders.

Dili, 10.04.2010!