A man in the camel camp at the Sibi Mela Camel Festival, Balochistan, Pakistan, 1998, Ed Kashi A man in the camel camp at the Sibi Mela Camel Festival, Balochistan, Pakistan, 1998, Ed Kashi

We support private and public actors to develop and implement context-specific, conflict-sensitive strategies to achieve their organizational objectives in FCS in a manner that at a minimum does ‘no harm’ and, where possible, maximises their unique potential to have positive impacts on conflict and stability.

Key services

We provide a range of interrelated services and opportunities:

  • Context/conflict analysis (including political economy analysis)
  • Organizational peace and conflict capacity assessments and capacity building
  • Conflict-sensitivity analysis/conflict impact assessment (of the conflict upon company/organizational operations, vice versa)
  • Conflict sensitivity strategy development, planning and monitoring.

Cross-cutting areas of work

  • Risk management
  • Applied upskilling (training, coaching, mentoring, accompaniment)
  • Strategic reviews and assessments
  • Leadership advisory in FCS
  • Crisis management in FCS

Examples of our work

Our clients and partners include multinational companies, development banks and other financial institutions, governments, and multilateral organisations such as the World Bank and United Nations.

Organizational Peace & Conflict Capacity Assessments (OPPCA):

Many actors are ill-equipped to operate in FCS leading to sub-optimal outcomes and a greater risk of ‘doing harm’ – to the organisation in question, to the context, and key internal/external stakeholders.

Governments, investors, civil society and other stakeholders have an increasing interest in understanding and monitoring how public and private sector actors operate in FCS and to what effect; the onus on these entities to operate in conflict-sensitive ways and be able to demonstrate that they do so is therefore mounting. Our unique Organizational Conflict & Peace Capacity Assessment provides a 360-degree analysis of a company’s ability to operate effectively and responsibly in FCS through a deep-dive review of its policy, practices and behaviours against international standards, with a clear identification of the gaps that need to be addressed to make the organisation – whether public or private – ‘fit for purpose’ for the context in which it operates.

Fostering conflict-sensitive and peace-promoting investments in fragile states:

Perceived as ‘risky’ contexts to invest in, FCS are increasingly in the spotlight of development financial institutions (DFIs)1.

The World Bank expects around 80% of the global extreme poor to be living in FCS by 2030. While the risks may often appear to outweigh the benefits – particularly for private investors – exploring how investments can contribute to pathways out of fragility carries increasing moral weight if the international community’s promise of ‘leave no one behind’ is to be met. What we know is that conventional aid instruments and approaches are not suitable for FCS and that more finance alone will not necessarily bring about peace nor sustainable development. Indeed, responsible, inclusive and conflict-sensitive investment is a critical imperative in FCS. TrustWorks is supporting key financial institutions with the development of their fragile states strategy with a view to catalysing more impactful and peace-promoting investments in FCS.

Elaborating strategies for the UN to address conflict and support sustainable peace in the Sahel:

The Sahel region continues to be embroiled in complex, multi-dimensional crises in two increasingly intertwined hot-spot areas: in Liptako Gourma and the Lake Chad basin.

In Liptako Gourma, TrustWorks led extensive analytical exercises designed to elucidate entry-points for fostering sustainable peace and access to livelihoods; the analysis focuses on both the drivers of conflict and on the impacts of the ‘triple nexus’ approach to the crisis on the part of international actors. In the Lake Chad Basin, TrustWorks supported international efforts to develop and implement – using highly participatory approaches – a comprehensive strategy for dealing with the Boko Haram crisis.

Areas of Work

Collaborate

We drive powerful, novel and unusual cross-boundary collaboration - breaking down siloes between private and public actors - to address critical conflict- and stability-related challenges in FCS that cannot be solved by any one actor or sector alone.

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Innovate

We push the boundaries of current knowledge and practice of private and public actors in FCS – challenging conventional ways of doing things – to achieve more effective, efficient and impactful outcomes on conflict and stability.

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