Dialogues with Dexis | Crisis Without Conclusion

On June 18, 2024, panelists and Dexis Senior Advisor, Andrew Sinclair, drew on their experiences working in Ethiopia, Ukraine, and across the U.S. interagency to discuss how donors and stabilization, peacebuilding, and development practitioners can adapt programming to protracted conflicts.

Development, stabilization, and peacebuilding programs designed to address and respond to conflicts have traditionally relied on—or assumed—some level of stability, predictability, and a functioning political process or peace agreement. However, today’s conflicts, from Gaza and Ukraine to Sudan and Ethiopia, are increasingly protracted, manifesting into complex crises with no clear end to armed hostilities or political resolution in sight. Despite efforts towards adaptive management and shock-responsive programming such as USAID’s Shock Responsive Programming and Adaptive Mechanisms guidance, many programs still struggle to adapt to the ongoing needs of countries experiencing prolonged armed conflict.

Nebiyu Tadesse, the Regional Program Manager for the USAID Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) Ethiopia Support Program (ESP), set the stage by discussing ESP’s approach to adapting to the conflict in Amhara. To adapt to challenging political conditions, ESP supported local partners who could act as intermediaries between the public and the government and implement community strengthening activities to minimize the impacts on civilians caught in the fighting. Nebiyu attributed ESP’s success to its adaptive model, which relies heavily on localization; short-term, grant-funded programs; close collaboration with OTI; and non-traditional programming—all of which allowed for flexible, responsive, and iterative programming amid a dynamic and violent conflict.

Mehri Druckman, the Ukraine Country Director at IREX, continued the conversation by describing how IREX adapted its work following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. IREX first prioritized staff and partner safety before shifting programming to include emergency response and addressing immediate needs of communities impacted by the invasion. Mehri attributed IREX’s success to several factors, including IREX’s longstanding relationships with local partners and stakeholders, clear and timely guidance from donors allowing for flexibility, and the resilience of Ukraine’s private and public sectors and civil society following the invasion. Mehri shared tips for adapting programming to conflict, including clear and timely guidance from donors; worst-case scenario planning; simplified procedures from both donors and implementers; and spaces for self-care and to manage trauma. However, it is important to remember, as Mehri stressed, “agile management is only possible with agile funding.”

David Young, the Deputy Director of the Lessons Learned Program at the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), rounded out the conversation by reflecting on how “upstream” or donor-level, bureaucratic, and political challenges can prevent policies for better conflict programming from becoming widely adopted practices across the U.S. Government. David pushed for improving conflict-focused approaches across the interagency by prioritizing adaptive management and shock-responsive programming as core foreign assistance functions, rather than outlier priorities retrofitted into traditional development instruments. He advocated for this institutional re-orientation to transform the development-focused personnel mechanisms, regulations, and procedures that often hinder the application of conflict-responsive approaches. David also reminded the audience that these shifts are vital as conflict settings increasingly become the norm, not the exception for aid programs.

All the panelists underscored the necessity of utilizing adaptive, localized, and flexible programming to address the unique challenges of protracted conflicts. The panelists highlighted the need to build strong local partnerships, have agile funding mechanisms, and tailoring program interventions for the context on-the-ground. However, as conflicts become more complex, unpredictable, and prolonged, traditional development approaches, including institutional reforms, must also evolve to ensure effective and responsive programming.

Dialogues with Dexis brings together diverse practitioners in conflict prevention, stabilization, governance, and global security to discuss emerging trends and new innovations. To receive future event invitations from Dexis, sign up below.