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Mitigating localized resource-based conflicts and increasing community resilience

Moyamba, Southern Province, Sierra Leone 2019 - 2022

UNDP, WFP


Short description
The project aimed to mitigate local conflicts between communities, private companies and the government by building capacities of institutions and dialogue platforms that promote peaceful relations. Through improved and team-oriented agricultural practices, this project aims to build cohesion among the community and empower women and form Farmers Associations.

Main purpose
Water harvesting / storage / irrigation,
Climate adaptation / resilience,
Increasing agricultural productivity / crop and cattle protection, Provision / protection / diversification of employment and livelihoods / poverty reduction,
Land tenure equality and security,
Gender equality,
Entry point for dialogue and mediation between conflicting groups,
Effective conflict mediation and resolution mechanism

Other expected benefits
Land restoration for increased soil fertility / reversal of land degradation,
Reduced environmental degradation from sustainable resource use

Mammy Queen of Makpele Chiefdom, Pujehun District, 2019-2022. Credit: UNDP.

Conflict context
The large-scale acquistition of kabd ub Sierra Leone by private sector mining and oil palm companies has resulted in the significant loss of farming land for the local population who rely on agricultural production as their main source of income an livelihood. With no alternative livelihoods for communities to support their households, land dispossession by private-sector companies has led to intensified food insecurity, vulnerability and conflict.

Communities are increasingly resorting to violence to express their dissatisfaction and seek for redress. In Januray 2019, clashses between communities and security forces in Pujehun district resulted in two protestors shot dead and 2500 people displaced. Displaced people took refuge in neighbouring chiefdoms, creating spill-over effetcs and putting additional pressures on vulnerable host chiefdoms.

Peace and security contributions
Women and youth have learned agricultural skills and have enhanced access to productive assets to gain meaningful self-employment in the agricultural sector. Social cohesion has been strengthened through collective work in Farmer Based Organisations. The perception of young women has transformed through serving as Community Youth Contractors and through accommodating leadership positions in Farmer Based Organisations and agricultural cooperatives. Women were able to advocate for their needs through their meaningful participation in Community Based Participatory Planning processes.

Reported elements of good practices

  • Using the method of Inland Valley Swamps farming, which is is labour intensive and requires farmers to work together in groups, strengthened social cohesion in communities.
  • The perception of young women has transformed through serving as Community Youth Contractors and through accommodating leadership positions in Farmer Based Organisations and agricultural cooperatives.
  • With most of their agricultural land affected by mining pollution, the project has enabled women and youth to intensively develop and cultivate unutilized land, significantly strengthening social cohesion and increasing food security.

Reported challenges

  • Lack of access to productive resources and minimal inclusion in community planning and dialogue mediation platforms.
  • Customary leaders, particularly Paramount and section chiefs, were often perceived by their community members as being in cahoots with the private companies and inequitably benefitting from the dividends of their operations.
Checklist
Environmental impact evaluation: a positive impact on the environment has been identified
Peace & security impact evaluation: a positive impact on peace and security has been identified.
No consultation of peace & security expert
Conflict analysis
Community involvement
Gender and inclusive programming
Sustainability in case of increased violence

Practical details of implementation
Grievance redress committess held district meetings comprising sectional committees to prepare for a transition after project closure. This culminated in an inter-district multi-stakeholder platform meeting in Bo City where an exit and sustainability plan was developed and adopted by the multi-stakeholder platform.

Method of monitoring environmental and peace impacts
The project initiated a mid-term evaluation conducted by an independent evaluator specializing in peacebuilding coordination with the Peacebuilding Fund monitoring and evaluation focal point. The independent final evaluation was initiated in order to ascertain relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and partnership quality of the project. It measured indicators such as the percentage of community memberst that had a conflict in the previous two years and felt it had been resolved fairly, the number of inclusive peacebuilding committees, and the perception of the reduction of resource-based conflicts.

A land degradation assessment was conducted by Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute in late 2020 to determine the impact of extractive industries on the availability and quality of arable land in target communities. Since the report had not been validated at the desired time – because of COVID-19 and lengthy follow-up consultations – the project convened a validation workshop in March 2022 in partnership with the Office of the Vice President. It was attended by representatives of relevant MDAs , traditional leaders and community members.