Division for Public Administration and Development Management (DPADM) Action

The Division manages several capacity-building projects. It implements a project aimed at assisting Governments in sub-Saharan Africa to strengthen their policy-making, institutional and personnel capacities to manage and mitigate conflicts in constructive, non-violent and sustainable ways. Activities include:

• training programmes to upgrade universities, management and sub-regional training institutions
• technical assistance to public institutions
• policy advice for mainstreaming conflict prevention
• 4) enhancing the capacities of African NGOs working in conflict through the Peacebuilding Portal.

The Division implements several regional and country-specific activities:

• A regional project based at the University of Ghana entitled Training Programme in Good Governance and Peacebuilding which offers training workshops for civilian personnel in peacekeeping missions
• UNDP-funded conflict prevention projects in Zimbabwe and Romania;
• Framework Team on Prevention peace and development projects in Ghana and Guyana.

The Division for Public Administration and Development Management also works in the reconstruction of governance institutions and structures in post-conflict situations. Recent and on-going activities include: Angola (reconstituting public administration), Balkans (strengthening public administration in Kosovo), Liberia (good governance), Mozambique (elections), Rwanda (judges and administration), Somalia (Somaliland-planning), South Africa (local government capacity-building), Burundi, and DRC.

DPADM is also involved in the DESA pilot project in rural Timor Leste for capacity building and the promotion of human security, integrating productive activities, social and community development and water and energy infrastructure. The project will address the sustainability of access to basic services as a result of very limited capacities and lack of confidence of the communities. A second challenge is creating a culture of consultation between district/central government officials, community based organizations and NGOs.

Interdepartmental effort

The Division closely cooperates with UNDP in a number of prevention-related activities: these include developing appropriate curricula for conflict prevention and resolution training and in the development of the Peacebuilding Portal, a networking and information sharing tool for non-governmental organizations in Africa.

The Division participated in the first two inter-agency missions of the Framework Team for Coordination on Prevention to Guyana and Ghana. Both have lead to project formulations for which DPADM continues to provide on-going advisory services.

DPADM is entering a collaboration with the OAS for the expansion and adaptation of the Peacebuilding Portal to include Latin America and the Caribbean. We are also exploring the development of a conflict management capacity-building project for training and institutional development, as well.

A representative from DPADM participates regularly in a number of interagency initiatives related to peace, security, and governance.

Mandate

A/55/985-S/2001/574, Item VII. B. Para 167: The most promising approach.....to build national and international capacity for long-term action to prevent armed conflict.
Para 169: The United Nations.....should support national efforts for conflict prevention and should assist in building national capacity in this field.
Para. 11 mainstreaming. and best include a conflict prevention perspective in...activities"
Annex 1, Para 13. "stresses the important role that women...can play and calls for the strengthening of that role in all relevant institutions at the national, regional and international levels.

A/RES/50/225, Item 13 and 14: Requests the United Nations to develop strategies, at the request of interested countries, for rebuilding a viable public administration in countries

Undergoing post-conflict rehabilitation and reconstruction