Militaries and Development

Uma Kothari, University of ManchesterMatt Baillie Smith, Northumbria UniversityNina Laurie, University of NewcastleRachel Woodward, University of Newcastle

Tensions between the military and traditional development actors

‘Some (development people) areup in arms – soldiers should stickto what they do best while development actors do the same.But …the reality is that the militaryare already doing development’

(Centre for Global Development)

Understanding military engagement

• Militaries of the North and South have for long been involved in activities beyond stabilisation and security – in what we might refer to as development-related activities

• Increasing numbers of military are now engaged in development-related activities

• former ex-military personnel are seeking second careers in development organisations and agencies

• Much of the literature in development focuses on the development-security nexus but not on development.

The military as new development actors

Explore how militaryorganisations and personnel,whose security roles oftenresult in them taking part in development-related activities, might be considered as actors in the field of development.

Examine how and where military roles are fostering new development actors and the implications of this for development encounters, policies and aid.

While the military have for some time been involved in humanitarian and development related activities, the form and extent of their involvement is changing alongside transformations in the environment in which development is now taking place.

Understanding the growing influence of the military in diverse development settings has the potential to radically change accepted ways of thinking about who development actors are, what they do and what development means.

Civil-military engagement and relations

Understanding the role of military institutions and personnel in development

What are the characteristics and history of the military/security/development nexus?

Should military organisations and personnel be involved in development?

To what extent are the military involved in development activities and thereby constitute new actors in development?

Do they receive training in development related work and if so, what does this consist of?

What are the perceptions of military personnel (including ex military), diverse military organisations, development agencies and donors of their involvement and expertise?

What are the career trajectories, skills and experiences of ex-military personnel who subsequently work in development organisations and agencies?

Emerging issues• The military and ex-military are established and increasingly

important actors in development policy and practice but their specific activities and impacts on development ideas and practices are largely absent from scholarly debate.

• The literature on securitisation and development has tended to focus on stabilisations and humanitarian assistance and has thus far been unable to capture the diversity and complexity of the ways in which the (ex)military engage in development at individual and institutional levels.

• Interdisciplinary work is essential to challenge assumptions about an homogenous ‘military’ and an homogenous ‘development’, and to understand how multiple military and development institutions and individuals intersect at policy, practical and theoretical levels.

• To develop and enhance understanding, it is important to engage diverse groups of stakeholders who represent the different components of the multi-layered relationships between the military and development.

Further research is needed tocapture and identify the formal and informal, unintended and indirect ways in which the military are engaged with development to ensure future discussions and actions are underpinned by a critical appreciation of the complex ways the military and development, institutionally, personally and ideologically, come together, or diverge, in diverse settings.

New pathways into development for military actors

What are the diverse pathways and processes into development being forged by national military institutions and personnel in the global South and what are the potential implications of these for development aid, policy and practice?

South Sudan: from liberation force to national army

Rare opportunity to capture amoment of transition in South Sudan, the world’s newest independent state.

Benefits of learning from an environment where development infrastructure and planning are core activities in the early stages of statebuilding and in which the role of the military is in flux following the end of civil conflict .

‘We need to initiate more interest in the military getting involved in development issues rather than thinking all the time about war - as is the case in most conflict emerging countries particularly in Africa’

(Director of Policy Planning and Research, Ministry of Defence, Republic of South Sudan, personal communication to PI, September 2012).