This brief aims to contribute to the study of the relationship between government, oil corporations, and local communities in South Sudan. Its area of study are the oil fields of Blocks 3 and 7 in Melut and Maban Counties, Upper Nile State, the largest oil producing area in the country,... more
Researchers from SÜDWIND and BICC traveled to gold mines in the DR Congo and Peru in the framework of a joint project to find out which measures can help small-scale and artisanal miners to secure their livelihood in regions of conflict and to improve social and ecological mining... more
Documentation of an expert meeting on artisanal miners, Bonn (29 February 2012). more
The paper begins with a discussion of the possible negative consequences of oil exploitation in developing countries, often referred to as resource curse, introducing the analytical framework of the ‘petro-state’ (Section 1). In order to assess the relevance of revenue transparency for addressing... more
BICC brief 41 analyzes the effects of oil production on conflict dynamics in Chad. The authors, Lena Guesnet and Claudia Frank conclude in the study that the goal of the project supported by the World Bank, to foster development in the Central African country has failed miserably.
The...
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The trade and exploitation of natural resources such as cocoa, gold, petroleum and diamonds contributed to the conflict in Côte d’Ivoire and still obstruct the peace process in the country. This is one of the conclusions of BICC brief 40, entitled: “Natural Resources in Côte d’Ivoire: Fostering... more
BICC brief 38 documents the international conference “Digging for Peace: Private Companies and Emerging Economies in Zones of Conflict” which took place from 21 to 22 November 2008 in Bonn. About 120 participants, amongst them representatives of research institutes, private companies, civil society... more
A historical perspective, as proposed by this Occasional Paper, might illuminate one of the underlying roots of conflict and state failure and might also help address central problems to conflict resolution in Somalia. It is the thesis of this Paper that in the fertile riverine areas of southern... more
This collection of Southern African case studies is intended to contribute to the burgeoning literature on transboundary water governance (TBWG) particularly as it applies to areas of the Global South. Specifically, the collection interrogates the idea of the ‘boundary’. Transboundary Management is... more
Côte d’Ivoire is the only country, which is currently under embargo by the United Nations for the export of conflict diamonds since December 2005. The conflict and years of ‘no war, no peace’ have been profitable for both the military and the Forces Nouvelles (FN) rebels, thereby paralyzing the... more
Frustrated by complex donor policies and the high overhead costs of multilateral development projects, many African governments appreciated the alternative presented by the Chinese government in an increasingly multi-polar world.
However, a sober analysis of China’s role in Africa indicates...
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For many developing countries, the extraction of natural resources has been a blessing, as their export can provide urgently needed development capital. For others, however, resource wealth has been a curse, as their population still faces extreme poverty and they have been haunted by corruption,... more
This synopsis on ‘resources and conflict’ presents 16 contemporary cases in which large projects from the areas of the extractive industries (oil, gas, and mining), logging and water management have led to violent or violence-prone conflicts. The synopsis comprises the core variables that determine... more
Violent conflict around the extraction of natural resources characterizes everyday life in many resource-rich development countries. In particular in countries, where state structures are weak and where deficits in resource governance exist, a specific constellation of controversial extraction... more
The BP Tangguh gas project in the Indonesian province of (West) Papua is the currently largest development project in Indonesia. Situated in Bintuni Bay in the west of New Guinea, BP intends to extract natural gas from offshore gas fields, liquefy it on land and export it to customers such as China... more
The cocoa trade from Côte d’Ivoire, the country’s main commodity has played a major role in the four-and-a-half-years of armed conflict. Over US $118 million revenues from the cocoa trade flowed into the conflict by funding both the government and the rebel group ‘Forces Nouvelles (FN)’ in the... more
The role of external economic actors in war economies and their importance for strategies to end wars in Sub-Saharan Africa. more
Overview about conflict resources in Africa. more
Nowadays water security is an essential component both of the national security of individual states and of international security, because all dimensions of an extended security concept (food security, economic security, environmental security, human security at large) are dependent on water... more
The first section of the paper provides an assessment of the current state of the ‘peace’ process: Political and security-related developments of the past years are analyzed with a special focus on continuities and changes of politico-economic structures and networks of its former war economy. This... more
The aim of this work is to identify if the problems posed by the environmental degradation of the Caspian Sea could be such an issue. The results of cooperation on environmental issues would be twofold. First it would ensue direct action against the large-scale ecological degradation, protection... more
In the context of the discourse on ‘new wars’, in which economic motives and agendas are of major importance, increasing attention is being focused on the role of the private business sector in contemporary violent conflicts and wars. Private business can contribute both to the outbreak of violent... more
From 1–2 March 2004, the Center for Development Research (ZEF) and the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC) hosted an International Expert Workshop on “Water, Development and Cooperation – Comparative Perspective: Euphrates-Tigris and Southern Africa” in Bonn, Germany. Experts from the... more
The overall aim of this paper is to provide an understanding of the role external actors play in Somalia’s war economy. To achieve this, the study will take a close look at the impact of international economic agents; that is, individuals, groups of people, corporations and institutions based... more
In the political arena, the revenue from oil had a direct impact on the delicate balance of military power between the Government of Sudan and its principal enemy, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA). This report analyzes how the funds from the oil boom have allowed the government side to buy... more
