Negotiating Natural Resources for Peace: Ownership, Control and Wealth-Sharing

Natural resources (such as oil, natural gas, diamonds, minerals, forests and water) are often a major source of national income, and are also a major cause of conflict and instability if mismanaged or shared unfairly. Countries with weak institutions often struggle to handle the potentially destructive force of corruption and attempts by various actors to capture the wealth generated by natural resources. The governance of natural resources is especially important in the context of divided societies because control over the benefits from local natural resources is often a chief motivator of ethnic or identity-based conflicts. In this report the authors argue that this trend makes it important to broaden knowledge and understanding of governing arrangements for natural-resources, a subject which has not traditionally received extensive treatment in constitutions and peace agreements. Available on: http://www.hdcentre.org/files/Negotiating%20natural%20resources%20for%20peace.pdf