Learning paper Working with government and customary authorities

Community based peace and security committees should not work in isolation, but look for cooperation with other stakeholders. However cooperation with the local government authorities and customary authorities is not always easy. In the learning paper, we describe how NGOs deal with the challenges and opportunities in this cooperation. 

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19 January 2020

Participation

Government and customary authorities in peacebuilding

Sustainable peace and security depend on functioning institutions and relationships of trust and cooperation between people and the authorities that serve them. As local and international nongovernmental organisations (NGOs), we work in contexts where protracted conflict has damaged or destroyed many institutions and undermined statesociety relations. Building (or rebuilding) trust and cooperation takes time and requires skills and resources, and must be done in a way that ensures all relevant groups are included. 

One of the main topics addressed in this paper is the cooperation with traditional authorities, customary justice systems and government authorities. The learning event resulted in a leaning paper and a short video on this topic. Customary authorities might have more local legitimacy, but the customary justice system is often discriminating women, youth and minority groups

This paper addresses the cooperation between NGOs and traditional authorities, customary justice systems and government authorities. The paper is written after an international learning event with peacebuilding practitioners.

Video: Government and customary authorities 

Best practices

In conflict-affected countries, government institutions are often weak, under-resourced and susceptible to corruption. In such contexts, communities often rely on customary authorities to access justice and security, finding them more accessible than state authorities. Customary authorities are not unproblematic, however: their views and practices often diverge from the rule of law and the principles of human rights or gender sensitivity. Government authorities also typically fail to meet these standards. NGOs working to enhance peace and security often need to work with or alongside both sets of institutions. The learning paper describes the challenges and risks of the cooperation, and provides best practices of NGOs.

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