Security and justice sector development

In countries emerging from crisis and conflict we work with communities, security providers like the police, and the international community to improve security and justice provision. Saferworld believes that development and poverty reduction strategies in conflict-affected and fragile contexts must also tackle security and justice issues. We support efforts to treat security and justice as basic services by mainstreaming them into development strategies.

Our work on security and justice involves different strands of work:

Community-based policing

Community security

Monitoring and evaluation of security sector reform

Our projects include supporting the security and justice needs of vulnerable communities and groups by working with law enforcers and NGOs. We promote community participation in the design and delivery of security and justice mechanisms and build partnerships between communities and security and justice providers.

Saferworld also works both with national security and justice reform programmes and with the international and donor-government structures and policies which support security and justice reform. We work to ensure that reform programmes which target national security and justice systems are effective and are based on key principles including: conflict sensitivity; local ownership and partnership; gender awareness and equality; a people-centred approach; accountability and transparency and sustainability.

 Access to justice is recognised as a key challenge in many conflict-affected places. By addressing these concerns, including through a greater understanding of the linkages between formal and informal security and justice providers and mechanisms, Saferworld aims to make a practical contribution to improved conflict dynamics at the local and national levels.