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Corinne Graff, Ph.D.

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Corinne Graff, Ph.D.

Senior Advisor, Conflict Prevention and Fragility, United States Institute of Peace

An Aid Program for Countries At The Edge of Chaos

DATE: August 23, 2022 6:00 pm

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The Biden administration recently inaugurated a program that aims to bring stability and economic growth to countries at the edge of disaster and chaos. Aid organizations like Mercy Corps and the Alliance for Peacebuilding lobbied for the plan, and it won wide bipartisan support in both houses of Congress.

The hope is to prevent the descent into war, mass killings and vast displacements.

Consider this: 100 million people are now forced displaced, having fled their homes, mostly from conflicts. This is a new UN figure. It was 70 million in 2018.

The intent of the bill is for U.S. Embassies to work with local partners and civil society on a 10-year plan to bring about political reconciliation, encourage democratic development, to prevent mass atrocities, attract investment, and most of all, avoid having to deploy the U.S. military.

The initiative is called the Global Fragility Act. President Trump signed it into law in 2019 and President Biden set it in motion this past April.  The cost is relatively modest — $200 million a year. It could change the world for the better.

The Council has invited Corinne Graff, Ph.D. from the United States Institute of Peace to explain how the initiative will work, using one of the five places the administration has selected as an example — coastal West Africa.  The three landlocked countries in the Sahel — Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso — are already convulsed by ISIS-related insurgencies, and the aim now is to prevent that from spreading to Benin, Togo, Ghana, Cote D’ivoire and Guinea.

What makes the program unique is that ideas will be encouraged to flow from the field and be judged by what works, not by the earmark in the Congressional budget process.

 

Background

Dr. Graff is a senior adviser at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington and was on the task force that helped craft the Fragility program. Before that she was deputy assistant administrator for Africa at the U.S. Agency for International Development. She also coordinated development priorities on the National Security Council and was a fellow at the Brookings Institution. She co-edited a book titled Confronting Poverty: Weak States and U.S. National Security. She is a graduate of Smith College and received her doctoral degree from the Swiss Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies.

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Wilson Center

Forced displacement represents one of the most pressing humanitarian issues of our time. Individuals and families, torn from the fabric of their communities, find themselves navigating a world of uncertainty, often without basic necessities or a clear path to safety. There are currently some 110 million forced displaced, and this number is growing by 10 million each year!

At the heart of this crisis are the political triggers. Armed conflicts, ethnic or religious persecutions, and systemic human rights abuses force millions to flee their homes in terror. Many are displaced within their own national boundaries, while others seek asylum abroad. If these factors change as a result of political shifts at home or the pressures from abroad, they can return to their homes. Forced displacement is thus different from environmentally driven displacement, as victims of climate change may never be able to return to their homes.

The ramifications of any sort of displacement are profound, not just for those directly affected, but also for host communities and countries. Overburdened infrastructures, socio-economic strains, and cultural tensions can arise, necessitating comprehensive strategies to foster harmony and integration. Yet the root causes of forced displacement can be remedied with a concerted focus by local players and international diplomacy.

Organizations like Refugees International play a crucial role in this arena, advocating for the rights and needs of the displaced, conducting on-the-ground assessments, and influencing policymakers to take informed actions. Their relentless work underscores the gravity of the situation and the urgency ofinternational cooperation. But they, too, are overwhelmed by the rapid expansion of the crisis.

International Humanitarian Law (IHL), with its core principles centered on the protection of civilians during conflicts, plays a pivotal role in this discourse. Yet, despite clear legal frameworks, compliance remains
inconsistent. This initiative emphasizes the importance of upholding and reinforcing these international standards.

It’s not just about recognizing the problem; it’s about active engagement. We urge governments, organizations, and individuals to prioritize the rights and needs of the forced displaced. Through collective efforts, informed policies, and sustained advocacy, we can shift the narrative from passive acknowledgment to proactive intervention.