African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes

African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes
Name	African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes
Formation	1994
Type	Non-governmental organization
Headquarters	Nairobi, Kenya
Region	Africa

African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes is an independent Nairobi-based think tank and mediation institute founded in 1994 that works on conflict prevention, negotiation, and peacebuilding across the African continent. The Centre operates within networks that include the United Nations, African Union, Intergovernmental Authority on Development, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, and regional bodies while collaborating with universities such as University of Nairobi, Makerere University, and University of Pretoria.

History

The organisation was established in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide and during the post-Cold War era that saw interventions by the United Nations Security Council, the Organisation of African Unity, and actors involved in the Sierra Leone Civil War and Liberian Civil War. Early founders drew on experiences from the Arusha Accords, the Ethiopia–Eritrea Boundary Commission, and peace processes linked to the Comoros and Somalia, engaging practitioners trained in methods used by Carter Center, Conciliation Resources, and International Crisis Group. Over time the Centre expanded programming in response to crises such as the Lord's Resistance Army insurgency, the Darfur conflict, and the Mali War, aligning with initiatives from the Economic Community of West African States and the Southern African Development Community.

Mandate and Objectives

The Centre’s mandate emphasises mediation, facilitation, and capacity-building for actors involved in disputes like negotiating parties from South Sudan, Sudan, and Central African Republic, and institutions such as the Kenyan judiciary and Uganda People's Defence Force. Objectives reference support for implementation mechanisms promoted by the African Peer Review Mechanism, promoting alternatives to litigation modelled on precedents like the Good Friday Agreement and the Mozambique peace process, and strengthening linkages with African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights and International Criminal Court compliance frameworks.

Organizational Structure

Governance combines a board drawn from senior figures with experience in bodies such as the United Nations Secretariat, African Union Commission, Amnesty International, and the World Bank, while operational teams include mediators, researchers, and trainers recruited from institutions like Oxford University, Harvard Kennedy School, and London School of Economics. The Centre’s departments mirror functions practiced by entities including United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and European Union External Action Service, and staff have rotated through missions such as the United Nations Mission in South Sudan and African Union Mission in Somalia.

Programs and Activities

Programs cover mediation support missions in contexts similar to Burundi and Zimbabwe, training courses influenced by curricula from the Geneva Centre for Security Policy and the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, and research outputs comparing cases like Angola and Mozambique. Activities include track-two dialogues that draw participants from political movements in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, technical assistance for ceasefire monitoring as seen in Liberia and Sierra Leone, and workshops for negotiators patterned on practices from the Oslo Accords and the Camp David Accords.

Partnerships and Funding

Funding and partnerships span multilateral donors such as the European Commission, United Nations Development Programme, and African Development Bank, bilateral partners including the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, and Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and philanthropic supporters like the Open Society Foundations and Ford Foundation. Collaborative projects have been implemented with organisations such as Mercy Corps, Search for Common Ground, and International Rescue Committee, and have coordinated with research partners including Chatham House, Brookings Institution, and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Notable Interventions and Impact

The Centre contributed to negotiation support in post-election dialogues in Kenya and Zimbabwe, facilitated confidence-building measures in disputes involving Ethiopia and Eritrea, supported demobilisation planning relevant to the Democratic Republic of the Congo peace architecture, and provided mediation inputs for processes connected to the Sudanese Revolution. Evaluations by reviewers with affiliations to United States Institute of Peace and International Alert cite outcomes such as reduced violence in targeted localities, improved capacities among negotiators from Gambia and Sierra Leone, and uptake of dispute resolution modalities by municipal authorities in Nairobi and Kigali.

Criticism and Challenges

Critics drawn from analysts at Human Rights Watch and commentators writing for Al Jazeera and The Guardian argue that outcomes can be limited by constraints similar to those identified in interventions by the United Nations and African Union, including limited access to financing from entities like the World Bank and donor conditionalities from the European Union. Operational challenges mirror those faced by missions such as AMISOM and include security risks in Mogadishu and Bamako, political resistance from elites in Kinshasa and Luanda, and difficulties in measuring long-term impacts compared with indicators promoted by the Global Peace Index and Fragile States Index.

Category:Peace and conflict studies organizations