Chronic violence and non-conventional armed actors

New forms of violence that are distinct from those associated with traditional armed conflict have emerged as a major global concern in recent years. International donors and agencies are spending increasing resources on intervening in a broad spectrum of violence-related threats around the world, ranging from the “non-conventional armed violence” associated with gangs, youth, and the illicit economy to the everyday violence embedded in communities and family life. However, policymakers, practitioners, and scholars understand the nature of the problem in different ways and come to starkly different conclusions as to both its severity and what should be done about it.

Given the increasing hybridity among criminal, political and social forms of violence, this report proposes an integrated conceptual framework for understanding these diverse forms of insecurity. This framework is based on the challenges posed by “chronic violence” to the full arc of human development – from the maternal-infant bond to broader social behaviour, the practice of citizenship, the evolution of the state, and institutions and political processes from the local to the international level.