Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Sudan

Minority Rights, Early Warning and Conflict Prevention: Lessons from Darfur

Attachments

Since the late 1990s, early warning and conflict prevention have become high-priority areas for multilateral organizations and, at the highest levels, there is growing political will for more effective institutional approaches. Recent efforts to enhance long-term 'structural' and more immediate 'operational' conflict prevention are encouraging, but a requirement for multilateral institutions to act as part of a 'culture of prevention' remains elusive.

There is a strong link between oppressed and marginalized minorities and contemporary conflicts, and conflict prevention needs to be geared towards addressing (often less visible and less 'strategic') minority issues. This is a particular concern in Africa, where discrimination against minorities is often present alongside other structural preconditions for conflict.

The aim of this study is to learn from the Darfur conflict and provide insights as to how better incorporation of minority rights can strengthen the work of institutions mandated with conflict early warning and prevention.