Fragile and conflict-affected states Archives

Local democracy and security in Ukraine

April 29, 2022 LPS Alliance

Conventional security discourses did not predict the magnitude and endurance of resistance efforts in Ukraine, considering the asymmetry between Russia and Ukraine in terms of military capacity. Based on our own research on local democracy […]

Is Decentralization a Road to Peace in Africa?

December 23, 2021 LPS Alliance

To discuss the issue of conflict and whether decentralization is a means to reduce conflicts, the UN Development Program (UNDP), the Local Public Sector Alliance (LPSA) and the Development Partners Network on Decentralization and Local […]

Aiding Afghan Local Governance: What Went Wrong?

November 13, 2021 LPS Alliance

After twenty years of an ambitious, costly international state-building effort, the government of Afghanistan collapsed in the summer of 2021 in a matter of weeks. The Afghan security forces’ remarkably rapid defeat earned significant attention, […]

Somalia: Moving the Federalism Agenda Forward

December 12, 2020 LPS Alliance

Somalia is emerging from decades of conflict, with the signing of the Provisional Constitution in 2012 paving the way toward a political settlement. Whereas the Provisional Constitution defines the boundaries of Somalia based on the […]

Postconflict in Colombia: ‘Paz territorial’, Decentralisation and Citizen Participation

October 17, 2016 LPS Initiative

The end of the armed conflict is the opportunity to re-route the complementary agendas of decentralisation and citizen participation so as to contribute to building a stable and lasting peace. On 24 August, after nearly […]

Iraq’s Regional Decentralisation Debate is Heating Up

September 22, 2016 LPS Initiative

As the battle of Mosul looms, it may be wise to place on the back burner the debate on regional formation initiatives. The decentralisation of security, spending and administrative power is regularly cited as a […]

No Going Back: Why Decentralisation is the Future for Syria

September 7, 2016 LPS Initiative

Five years of war have fuelled deep divisions in Syria, in particular along ethno-sectarian lines, but also along sharp geographic lines. Economic links and interdependency persists between various parts of the country despite the country […]

Ukrainian women embroider a map of Ukraine with the different flags of the regions in the country during a pro-Ukranian meeting in the southern coastal town of Mariupol September 13, 2014. VASILY FEDOSENKO/REUTERS

Constitution Making in Ukraine: Refocusing the Debate

April 15, 2016 LPS Initiative

Among the triggers and demands of Ukraine’s 2013–2014 Euromaidan antigovernment protests were fundamental concerns that go to the heart of the country’s constitutional architecture. Yet, the two main dimensions of constitutional reform pursued since 2014—judicial […]

Decentralization for Peace in Turkey, Iraq and Syria

March 30, 2016 LPS Initiative

Decentralization through administrative reform is the solution for the Kurdish question in Turkey and its immediate neighborhood. The Republic of Turkey is ill. The violent upheaval taking place just over the border in Iraq and […]

Syria Civil War: Key Powers ‘Consider Federal Division’

March 11, 2016 LPS Initiative

The United Nations envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, has said that the possibility of federalism for the war-ravaged country has not been taken off the table for the upcoming peace talks in Geneva. The […]