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WIDER Book 'Making Peace Work' Launched in Berlin

Tony Addison and Tilman Brück launched their new book ‘Making Peace Work: The Challenges of Social and Economic Reconstruction’ on 14 January at DIW Berlin. In the seminar, which was co-hosted by the United Nations Association of Germany, the editors of the volume provided insights into some of the main issues that arise in post—conflict economic and social reconstruction, and offered examples of what works, and what does not. They stressed the need for the equal promotion of peace, participation and prosperity in developing countries emerging from war, and to focus on justice and distributional issues in reconstruction. The volume discusses these issues in a series of topical chapters ranging from ethical debates and horizontal inequality, to fiscal issues and the rehabilitation of the health system. Addison and Brück stressed in their presentation the need for developing local capacity and for high impact projects that are effective in thwarting the spoilers of peace in its early stages. Dr. Beate Wagner, General Secretary of the United Nations Association of Germany who chaired the meeting, echoed this sentiment by calling for greater consistency and coherence in post—war reconstruction. The presentations were followed by a lively debate with an audience of over forty participants from academia, government and civil society.

The book is a collaboration between UNU-WIDER and DIW Berlin, building on UNU-WIDER’s research on 'Making Peace Work: Conflict and Post Conflict Societies', carried out with financial support of the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the UK Department for International Development (DFID).

Making Peace Work: The Challenges of Social and Economic Reconstruction.

Edited by Tony Addison and Tilman Brück, Palgrave Macmillan, November 2008.