Show Summary Details

Page of

Printed from Oxford Research Encyclopedias, International Studies. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a single article for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice).

date: 11 February 2025

The Role of Local Actors in Peacekeeping: The Cases of Liberia and Sierra Leonelocked

The Role of Local Actors in Peacekeeping: The Cases of Liberia and Sierra Leonelocked

  • Norman SempijjaNorman SempijjaFaculté de Gouvernance, Sciences Economiques et Sociales. Université Mohammed VI Polytechnique
  • , and Ekeminiabasi Eyita-OkonEkeminiabasi Eyita-OkonCenter for Africa-China Studies (CACS), University of Johannesburg

Summary

With the advent of multidimensional peacekeeping, in considering the changing nature of conflicts in the post–Cold War period, the role of local actors has become crucial to the execution of the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mandate. Just as peacekeeping does not have space in the UN charter, local actors do not have a clearly defined space in the UN-led conflict resolution process. However, they have gained recognition, especially in policy work, and slowly in the academic discourse, as academics and practitioners have begun to find ways of making peacekeeping and peacebuilding more effective in the 21st century. Therefore the construction and perception of local actors by international arbitrators play an important and strategic role in creating and shaping space for the former to actively establish peace where violent conflict is imminent. Local actors have independently occupied spaces during and after the conflict, and although they bring a comparative advantage, especially as gatekeepers to local communities, they have largely been kept on the periphery.

Subjects

  • Conflict Studies

You do not currently have access to this article

Login

Please login to access the full content.

Subscribe

Access to the full content requires a subscription