Events

Conflict and Fragility

Seminar: Conflict on resource access and management in Mali
07 Sep 2018 09:00 - 11:00
Source: Anca-Elena Ursu
Introduction

This event is organised by the Embassy of the Netherlands in Bamako, Mali.For further information contact Anca-Elena Ursu.

Over recent years, poor resource management and subsequent conflict over access to these resources have threatened the livelihoods of virtually every community in central Mali. Formal and traditional justice mechanisms have each often proven incapable of mediating conflicts effectively and bringing justice and reconciliation to the victims and disputants. 

Moreover, the increase in communal conflicts in central Mali has created a fertile breeding ground for radical, armed groups. These groups have become actively involved in the regulation of access to natural resources, as well as in the mediation of related conflicts, to help create local legitimacy for their rule. That these groups could exploit conflicts to consolidate their power demonstrates that fighting them will not be enough to stop destabilisation in the Mopti region. Only solutions that address the underlying drivers of instability will enable sustainable peace to emerge.

Supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, the research report ‘Under the gun: Resource conflicts and embattled traditional authorities in central Mali’ explores the lack of governance as a structural driver of resource conflict in the region and identifies a mix of short- and long-term measures to increase the legitimacy of the Malian state.

To ensure the uptake of knowledge and to further explore the conflict dynamics of the Mopti region, the Embassy of the Netherlands in Bamako will host a round table with diplomats, implementers and partners of the government of Mali. On this occasion, Clingendael researcher Anca-Elena Ursu will present her main findings and provide tailored, conflict-sensitive recommendations that build on the needs expressed by local populations and that decision-makers could follow in their efforts to bring stability to the people of Mopti in the short, medium and long term.