Most severe hunger crises around the world occur in situations affected by violent conflict. Finding better ways to address and prevent violent conflict is therefore necessary to eradicate hunger. In this regard, the Organisation des Nations Unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture - FAO developed a corporate framework in 2018 that outlines how the organization contributes to sustaining peace through its interventions. Moving forward, FAO intends to understand better the conflict dynamics in which its programmes take place, in order to ensure it does no harm, but also identifies where it can help strengthen and consolidate local peace.

In 2017, FAO sought the expertise of Interpeace, made available through Interpeace’s Advisory Team (IPAT), to operationalise this corporate framework.  Over the course of 2018, Interpeace and FAO developed and tested tools that will enable more systematic and robust conflict-sensitive programming. One of the most important products from this partnership was the The Programme Clinic Facilitation Guide. Following a year of testing in FAO field offices, this publication is a self-explanatory guide that helps users make their project or programme conflict-sensitive. The guide provides a multi-step process that empowers staff to effectively apply conflict-sensitive programme design in fragile and conflict-affected contexts; twelve FAO country offices have used this Programme Clinic approach to date, which is supported by a Guide to Context Analysis to inform FAO decision-making. The Programme Clinic Facilitation Guide is the first step in an ongoing process that will help further strengthen the contributions to local peace through FAO programmes aimed at strengthening resilience and achieving socio-economic development outcomes.

Interpeace and FAO are now embarking on a second phase of this joint work. IPAT will accompany FAO in further strengthening its internal capacities and processes for conflict-sensitive programming, as well as distilling typical pathways through which FAO programmes contribute to local peace impacts, within the scope of its mandate.

With this partnership, IPAT pursues the second part of Interpeace’s mandate, assisting the international community in playing a more effective role in supporting peacebuilding efforts around the world.

It is also part of IPAT’s wider efforts to accompany humanitarian and development actors in becoming more “peace responsive” so that international efforts collectively aggregate to greater peace impacts. This is based on the premise that peacebuilding is not only a set of dedicated activities undertaken by specialized organisations like Interpeace, but also a way of engaging in conflict-affected societies that, if adopted and applied by a larger set of actors, has the potential to really ‘up the game’ for peace and SDG 16.

For more background information about our partnership, read:

Tackling hunger through a peacebuilding approach: Interpeace partners with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)