13 years of conflict in Darfur have had severe and lasting consequences on local communities. Civilians have been subjected to widespread violence. The deterioration of confidence in governance and rule of law are further compounded by the destruction of infrastructure and livelihoods, and the near absence of basic social services.

Communities stabilized, as well as trust and confidence between communities restored, paving the way towards early recovery.

Communities affected by conflict in Darfur

Gender equality and women’s empowerment is a core goal of this project and will be activiely pursued by the DCPSF as a cross-cutting priority; the project also has a strong focus on youth

• Effective community level conflict resolution and prevention platforms are in place
• Cooperation between communities over disputed livelihood assets and income generating opportunities are increased
• Cooperation between communities over access to natural resources and basic social services is increased
• A network of effective peacebuilding intiatives is created and is feeding into wider peace fora and Darfur agendas.

Expected results:  

• 360 community based conflict resolution mechanisms are functioning effectively
• 328 initiatives deliver livelihood opportunities
• 440 km2 of communal land rehabilitated
• 434 new/rehabilitated schools, water facilities and other social infrastructure

Results from previous phases:  

• 80% of responding community members agreed that there was a decrease in communal conflicts
• Number of community initatives that deliver livelihoods/income opportunities increased by 90% in the last four years, 2011-2015 (76 new cases reported in 2015)
• Community mechanisms for natural resources management have more than doubled (to 70 cases)
• Number of capacitated CSO almost quintupled (to 43); 31 CSO demonstrated conflict sensitivity

Two key lessons learnt were: (i) success greatly depends on  in-depth understanding of local community dynamics; (ii) peace cannot be imposed by deadlines.

With commitments for 2016/17:

DFID, Norway

Without commitments for 2016/17 yet:

USAID, Sweden

• The DCPSF Steering Committee provides the strategic guidance. It is co-chaired by the UN RC/HC and one representative of one contributing donor. The Steering Committee includes contributing donors, representatives of Participating UN Organisations and an appointed INGO representative.
• A successful implementation of the DCPSF calls for a close coordination with local and state authorities, incl. traditional leaders, and other stakeholders present in the project area.
• The DCPSF paves the way to recovery and furthermore to development.

Phase 2 01.08.2016 - 31.12.2017   (Completed)