UNU-MERIT Working Papers Series
Transition from civil war to peace: The role of the United Nations and international community in Mozambique
Ayokunu Adedokun #2017-014With the heavy involvement of the United Nations (UN) and the
international community, the Rome General Peace Agreement (GPA) of 1992
ended more than 16 years of civil war in Mozambique. The peace agreement
and post-conflict initiatives by the international community was
successful in transforming the Mozambique National Resistance?(Renamo)
from a rebel group into a viable political party. Key components of
Mozambique's success in negotiating peace and creating conditions for
political stability and democracy were the provision of demobilisation
before democratisation, decentralisation of humanitarian and relief
efforts to provincial and district levels, financial support directly
for the development of political parties and budget support to sectors
relevant to peacebuilding. Though imperfect, Mozambique remains an
important case study in how the UN and international community can help
in post-conflict environments. Thus, the paper argues (both
theoretically and empirically) that success in peacebuilding operations
depends on credible and impartial international support through the UN,
as opposed to 'unilateral' peacebuilding operation through a 'powerful
state'.
Key words: Civil war, Peacebuilding, United Nations, Mozambique
JEL Classification: D74, F53, F54, N47, O55
Download the working paper (PDF)
