core issue

Introduction

Aid in war-torn countries suffers from several difficulties. Mainly: the problems of logistics; the risk of a “dependency syndrome”; the increase of social inequalities, sometimes in favour of the refugees to the detriment of the locals; the disloyal competition, for the local farmers, of the distribution of free food; the hijacking of aid for military purposes. Some points must be made clearer before undertaking a thorough study. First, war is certainly not restricted to the times of fighting, as peace is not characterized only by the absence of war. In his Leviathan, Hobbes would define peace rather as the absence of the threat of war. In other words, the field of study of Aid Watch is not limited to a dubious dichotomy between emergency and development. Crises can become permanent, while development experts sometimes have to deal with exceptional situations. Sustainable development is linked to two fundamental aspects of humanitarian action, namely reconstruction and the prevention of conflicts.

Another point to be stated is that establishing the difficulties and the challenges of aid in conflict situations leads to a quite complex description. Thanks to his academic and financial independence, a researcher can undoubtedly write more freely than a consultant in charge of the internal evaluation of a project funded by the backers who pay him. Evading issues for fear of putting the whole system into question leads to supporting practices that would individually be condemned. Yet the aim of research is not to disparage the humanitarian movement but, if possible, to contribute to improving work in the field, even if it involves informing without hiding problems. Looking critically at the aid provided by states, intergovernmental organizations or private actors is in no way incompatible with positive propositions. It is only necessary to avoid amalgams and to identify lapses, not to generalize improperly.

By showing the programmes at risk, the idea is to point out shortcomings to avoid catastrophes. The “humanitarian intelligence”, as we call it, consists in strengthening the analytical capacity and the “political awareness” of aid operators thanks to regional specialists. As NGO employees in the field often change quickly, one objective is to study the records of a programme and to stress the importance of the historical dimension which is indispensable to assess a situation in terms of improvement or degradation. As the contexts are very diverse, the aim is also to identify the features, to point out the obstacles and to take into account both the positive and negative effects of aid. Finally, we want to try to answer some of the questions raised by decision-makers or concerned citizens.