South Sudan

State building should be…

• Endogenous development (from within)

And should involved…• State-society bargaining to build more

effective, legitimate and resilient states

• Not about transferring institutional models but…• …local political processes which create public

institutions and generate their legitimacy in the eyes of a state’s population

In reality…

• Donor managerialism…• …& its quest for rapid modernisation of South

Sudan’s fragile state… • …diverts scarce resources…• …into unhelpful ideological battles

2005 CPA period starts 2011 IndependenceReferendum

Modernising forces – donor supported/driven SPLA Act Police Act Criminal Code

etc

SPLA/SPLM

GoSS

Elections

RSS

Emphasis on formal institutions, laws, etc Focu

s on in

dividuals

Modernisation through workshops

• Who could turn down:– ‘enhance development practitioners’ facilitation skills for

the capacity-building of gender-disadvantaged women’?• Everyone likes the rules of the game – but what are

they? – and for whose game?• And if there appear to be no rules, let’s introduce

them: – Criminal Code– Police Act– Penal Code– SPLA Act

And if something’s missing…?

• ‘We look at it and we say what is needed and we provide it….’

– E.g. Joint Operations Centres in all states

• ‘…Instead, we should come in and ask what is working.’

2005 CPA period starts 2011 IndependenceReferendum

Modernising forces – donor supported/driven SPLA Act Police Act Criminal Code

etc

SPLA/SPLM

GoSS

Elections

RSS

Emphasis on formal institutions, laws, etc Focu

s on in

dividuals

Customary law/Cultural practice (local)

Violent hinterland

Traditional chiefs/Local authorities

Counties; Payams; Bomas

Dynamic

Emphasis on negotiation; compromise; restoration

The group matters

Alcohol

Youth violence

Gender roles

Land use

EducationFactors and Trends

Violence

Trauma Food security

Key choices & clashes

Resistance to OECD ideology…• OECD ‘normative state’:

– ‘the way you did it in the west is the way you want everyone to do it – but in a fraction of the time’

– ‘you want a ‘right-sized’ army but a big army is how we keep everything in balance’

• Multi-party democracy– ‘you want one party per tribe? Chaos’

• Duty bearers & rights holders, civil society holding government to account – ‘you think government is bad, and everyone else good’

• Gender Equality – – ‘you want two commanders in the household and that doesn’t work.’

SPLM counter ideology emerging…

• New rules – generated by SPLM– The Draft NGO Act (curbing external service providers)– Draft Civic Engagement Act (curbing externally supported

human rights work)– Others to come? (anti-terrorism, media limitations, anti-

homosexuality, tax & land?)– ‘Gender’ terminology banned; ‘women’ ok

• Distraction from own process of society-state bargaining

Donor response to Political Economy Analysis

• ‘Interesting but it doesn’t really change anything does it?’ (UK)

• ‘You shouldn’t be wasting your time doing this kind of thinking…’ (US)

2005 CPA period starts 2011 IndependenceReferendum

Modernising forces – donor supported/driven SPLA Act Police Act Criminal Code

etc

SPLA/SPLM

GoSS

Elections

RSS

Emphasis on formal institutions, laws, etc Focu

s on in

dividuals

Customary law/Cultural practice (local)

Violent hinterland

Traditional chiefs/Local authorities

Counties; Payams; Bomas

Dynamic

Emphasis on negotiation; compromise; restoration

The group matters

Alcohol

Youth violence

Gender roles

Land use

EducationFactors and Trends

Violence

Trauma Food security

Key choices & clashes

Informal/Non-formal web of relationships

which affect all decisions

7 Guiding Principles (from Ethiopia)

1. Prioritising the hardest-to-reach civil society and citizens2. Focussing on people and on their capabilities and assets

and traditions, not undermining these strengths3. Building trust4. Incentivising innovation & creativity5. Social equality6. Promoting decision-making at the most local level possible7. Achieving best value for resources for poor people

• Aim for more incremental convergence of modern & customary

• Invest in people and processes that facilitate convergence – rather than fuel the ‘stand off’

• Find language which is based on commonly accepted principles, rather than contested

2005 CPA period starts 2011 IndependenceReferendum

Modernising forces – donor supported/driven SPLA Act Police Act Criminal Code

etc

SPLA/SPLM

GoSS

Elections

RSS

Emphasis on formal institutions, laws, etc Focu

s on in

dividuals

Customary law/Cultural practice (local)

Violent hinterland

Traditional chiefs/Local authorities

Counties; Payams; Bomas

Dynamic

Emphasis on negotiation; compromise; restoration

The group matters

Alcohol

Youth violence

Gender roles

Land use

EducationFactors and Trends

Violence

Trauma Food security

Key choices & clashes

Informal/Non-formal web of relationships

which affect all decisions

Convergence