Browse by Theme: Conflict & Fragility

As we launch into 2018 it is worth reflecting that 2017 has not only seen some political upheavals in the UK and the US but also some fundamental social shifts. Whilst the revelations of sexual harassment and abuse of power from Hollywood to almost every workplace were not a surprise to some, they certainly got people talking about what is acceptable and gave people the confidence to come forward and share their #metoo experiences. So 2018 has to be the year we reinforce this cultural shift and secure some concrete changes in policy and practice when it comes to achieving gender justice at home and abroad.

Until the acceleration of violence in 2015, women in Yemen were making some headway in challenging a system that largely excludes them from public life. But since 2015, war has impacted not only on their security and health, but also on the political spaces in which they can negotiate for empowerment. And as movement towards greater equality slow down, so too does the better protection from violence which accompanies it. So how can we break this vicious downward cycle?

As the international community gathers for the London Somalia Conference, the role of women in determining the country’s future is high on the agenda. So what are Somali women saying about women’s political participation in their country?

Today, ministers and senior diplomats from around the world meet with the UN, EU and states involved in the Syrian conflict for a high-level Conference (5 April) to identify ways forward on the crisis. This happens as news from Khan Sheikhoun in southern Idlib in Syria suggests that an aerial bombardment using chemical weapons has left over 50 dead, and the situation escalates across multiple besieged areas across the country. At the top of the agenda is the question of ‘reconstruction’ – yet what does ‘reconstruction’ mean in a country still at war?

Three years on from the start of the conflict in South Sudan, I returned to the country to help ensure that CARE’s life-saving work reaches the most vulnerable women and girls. The conflict has caused almost 1 in 4 to flee their homes, and our analysis, published today, shows that women and girls continue to bear the heaviest burden as the conflict worsens.

Functioning market systems and a responsible and responsive private sector are critical to livelihoods, autonomy and well-being. However they are both heavily impacted by crisis, including war.

There is an irony to current thinking on the private sector and peacebuilding.