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Realising Inclusivity: the Role of the United Nations in Promoting

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Realising Inclusivity: the Role of the United Nations in Promoting Realising Inclusivity The role of the United Nations in promoting inclusion at the country level © 2021 Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation All rights reserved. The opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation, its Board of Trustees or its International Honorary Committee. Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation Övre Slottsgatan 2, 753 10 Uppsala, Sweden [email protected] <www.daghammarskjold.se> Photos: Adobe Stock Images unless otherwise specified. Printed by X-O Graf Tryckeri AB (Uppsala, Sweden) ISBN: 978-91-985372-7-7 Realising Inclusivity The role of the United Nations in promoting inclusion at the country level Table of Contents Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................6 Acronyms and abbreviations ....................................................................................... 7 Foreword ......................................................................................................................8 Summary ................................................................................................................... 10 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 12 Part I. Realising Inclusivity: From Policy Recognition to Practice ............................. 16 Policy recognition for inclusive peacebuilding ...........................................................17 Understanding United Nations operations at the country level ................................ 25 Exploring the United Nations’ efforts to promote inclusivity at the country level ....26 Part II. Perspectives from Four Country Contexts ..................................................30 Colombia .................................................................................................................. 32 The Gambia ..............................................................................................................44 Jordan ....................................................................................................... 56 Sri Lanka ....................................................................................................................66 Part III. Strengthening Inclusivity at the Country Level ..................................................... 76 United Nations Country Teams and inclusivity ......................................................... 77 Common obstacles to realising inclusivity ................................................................80 Considerations for the United Nations in supporting inclusive peacebuilding ..........85 Concluding reflections ...............................................................................................90 Endnotes .................................................................................................................... 92 6 Realising Inclusivity Acknowledgements This report has been produced as part of the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation initiative, ‘Realising Inclusivity: Translating global policies at the country level’. The lead authors of the report were Matilda Hald, Johanna Mårtendal and Sarah Smith, with input from Micah Grzywnowicz. Sigrid Gruener provided overall leadership. Radhika Hettiarachchi and Christian Cito conducted field research as input to the findings presented in the report. Johanna Mårtendal, Lidewij Rouhof and Paulina Cruz Velasquez provided desk research. The report was copyedited by David Prater and designed by Kristin Blom. The Foundation would like to acknowledge the UN staff members, and the government and civil society representatives, who were interviewed as part of the country case studies, and those who participated in the validation roundtables. In particular, the Foundation wishes to thank the staff of the Resident Coordinator Offices in the four case-study countries, who encouraged and supported the engagement of members of their respective UN Country Teams in the initiative. Realising Inclusivity 7 Acronyms and abbreviations AU African Union CCA Common Country Analysis CDA Conflict and Development Analysis CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women CSO Civil society organisation ECOWAS Economic Community of West African States ELN Ejército de Liberación Nacional, National Liberation Army (Colombia) FARC-EP Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia–Ejército del Pueblo (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia–People’s Army) GDP Gross domestic product GYPI Gender and Youth Promotion Initiative HRC UN Human Rights Council IOM International Organization for Migration JONAP National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (Jordan) JNCW Jordan National Committee for Women LGBTI Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex LTTE Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam MOPIC Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (Jordan) MPTF UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund NAP National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security NDP National Development Plan NGO Non-governmental organisation OHCHR Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights PBF UN Secretary-General’s Peacebuilding Fund PBSO UN Peacebuilding Support Office PDET Planes de Desarrollo con Enfoque Territorial (Development Programmes with a Territorial-Based Focus, Colombia) PPP Peacebuilding Priority Plan PVE Preventing violent extremism RC UN Resident Coordinator RCO UN Resident Coordinator’s Office SDG Sustainable Development Goal UNDAF UN Development Assistance Framework UNDP UN Development Programme UNESCO UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNFPA UN Population Fund UNHCR UN High Commissioner for Refugees UNICEF UN Children’s Fund UNOWAS UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel UNV UN Volunteers UN Women UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women UPR Universal Periodic Review VNR Voluntary National Review WFP World Food Programme WHO World Health Organization WPS Women, Peace and Security YPS Youth, Peace and Security 8 Realising Inclusivity Foreword in-(ˌ)klü-ˈsi-və-tē We know how to say it, and few people argue its value, in theory. The question is: do we know how to implement the idea of inclusivity in practice? Too often, international policy development processes introduce terms with vague definitions that lack clarity in their application, resulting in both the term and the policy being reduced to jargon. Inclusivity can certainly be said to face such a risk. Despite broad recogni- tion of the importance of inclusivity and frequent use of the term in policy circles, too little is known about how policies regarding inclusivity are translated into action. Without thorough follow-up, monitoring and accountability, opportunities to support and strengthen inclusive efforts are lost, prospects of learning what works will be missed and the gap between the rhetoric at the policy level and contextual realities will remain vast. Inclusivity itself as a concept is not new. Numerous methods for deepening inclusivity in development and peace processes have been developed over time. Consequently, important progress has been made with results that are deserving of recognition. In this publication, the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation inquires: How does the United Nations at the country level, for instance, promote and support inclusivity in its policy, programming and development actions? What lessons can be observed and learned? Realising Inclusivity explores how agreed normative frameworks that out- line the imperative of inclusivity are translated into action at the country level, and in doing so contributes to a deeper understanding of what can be done and achieved. Exploring experiences and perspectives in four diverse country contexts in which the UN is active, it seeks to assist in turning attention and resources towards implementation of and accounta- bility for frameworks that aim to root development action in local contexts and people. The first three words of the UN Charter – ‘We, the peoples’ – set a people-centric tone that guides the organisation and its operations. In a similar way, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development contains a core commitment to leave no one behind. Inclusion, reflected in equality, is at the very centre of international policy frameworks and the development agenda. It is crucial to eliminating extreme poverty, promoting sustainable development and sustaining peace. Realising Inclusivity 9 A collective responsibility must be further recognised in the pursuit of a ‘We, the peoples’ perspective in all actions for peacebuilding and sustainable development. People in all countries must be allowed to participate to deliver the global vision that the 2030 Agenda presents, with ‘peaceful, just and inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence’ in clear focus. A simple but effective way to illustrate the importance of inclusion is to point to the consequences of exclusion. Inequality, marginalisation and discrimination are all powerful drivers of poverty, conflict and armed violence. If not recognised and tackled creatively, persistently and continuously, the risks of negative developments increase. The four country cases in this report illustrate this point. Conversations with diverse stakeholders across these contexts revealed a sense of keen openness – one could even describe it as eagerness or urgency – to embrace new approaches and strategies that have proven effective to advance inclusivity. These conversations were
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