Building Peace after War

: The Contributions of Local Infrastructures for Peace in Postconflict Liberia

Abstract

Using the case of Liberia, this study explores the ways and extent to which Local Infrastructures for Peace (henceforth acronymised as LIPs) contribute to peacebuilding in post-conflict societies. Overall, findings of this study demonstrate that despite their challenges andshortcomings, local or community based structures such as LIPs contribute significantly to peacebuilding. They do so, through their efforts, initiatives and interventions in two essential components of peacebuilding-- conflict transformation and conflict prevention- thus enhancing peaceful relations and addressing the structural causes and impacts of the civil war respectively. The study engages peacebuilding debates through a critical lens critiquing liberal peace and its alienation of local actors, structures and mechanisms while unpacking and providing nuanced perspectives on the relevance of these structures in the conduct of peace. Hence, the study posits that peacebuilding devoid of the recognition and inclusion of local structures and capacities runs the risk of side-lining sectors as well as peace benefactors within post-conflict spaces, resulting in a peace that is fragile, incomplete and unsustainable. The result of the study is informed by empirical data derived from 78 interviews, 21 focus group discussions (FGDs) and observations, collated during a four-month field study in 11 localities in Liberia. The empirical data is supplemented with secondary data resources including analysis of journal articles, reports, books and other digital materials with explicit focus on infrastructures for peace and its related LIPs as well as peacebuilding theories and praxis.

The study contributes significantly to peacebuilding theories and research. It adds to the debates on local peacebuilding, liberal peace and infrastructures for peace. It questions the hegemony of liberal peace and the ‘illiberal’ labelling of local or community-based structuresand approaches while making a case for the recognition and inclusion of the latter in peacebuilding. It also contributes to emerging local peacebuilding concepts of everyday peace and hybridity, reinforcing their relevance in theory and field of practice. The study proposes an analytical framework which would contribute to future research, serving as a foundation for further exploration of the work of LIPs and infrastructures for peace in general in post-conflict societies. Additionally, the framework would enhance understanding of the ‘local’ in peacebuilding lexicon, which is still in its nascent stages.

Date of Award	2021
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Coventry University
Supervisor	Miho Taka (Supervisor), Gordon Crawford (Supervisor) & David Curran (Supervisor)