Turkey and Somalia: Making aid work for peace
Turkey's growing aid budget, which made it the world's third largest humanitarian donor in 2013, has increasingly been focused on conflict-affected states. Since 2011, the Turkish government and Turkish non-governmental organisations have markedly expanded aid operations in Somalia. As the experience of other international actors has shown, aid can have unintended effects for peace and conflict in Somalia.
Through a joint research project with Istanbul Policy Center (IPC) conducted in 2014, Saferworld has sought to explore Turkish aid to Somalia and understand what the implications might be for peace and stability in Somalia. Key findings from the research are presented in this briefing, which identifies ways in which aid from Turkish agencies has been at risk of unintentionally fuelling conflict dynamics. The briefing also discusses a number of opportunities for making aid work for peace, which can be looked at under three broad areas:
- Make aid conflict sensitive
- Encourage statebuilding that works for peace
- Construct stronger partnerships around peace
Read the briefing Turkey and Somalia: Making aid work for peace (also available in Turkish).
Read the report Turkish aid agencies in Somalia.
Read more about our work on rising powers and peacebuilding.
“Turkey’s positive reputation and on-the-ground presence in Somalia puts both its official and civil society aid agencies in a strong position to leverage aid to support longer-term peace or, at the very least, manage the risks that it might fuel conflict.”
Saferworld, Istanbul Policy Center
