Crisis Prevention and Recovery

As part of its broader mission to enable sustainable social and economic development, the United Nations General Assembly has given UNDP a clear mandate to operate in “special development situations” where disasters and violent conflicts have undermined the human, social, physical and institutional capital that underpins development. UNDP endeavours to fulfil this mandate by supporting national and regional efforts to prevent and/or reduce the impact of natural disasters, prevent violence, assist in recovery from sudden crisis and bridge the gap between humanitarian response and development work. For this purpose, UNDP assists national authorities in initiating immediate early recovery and transition activities and in moving from a short- or medium-term post-crisis recovery into a longer-term national development framework, taking into account that crises (conflicts and/or natural disasters) constitute more than a short-term challenge, and that there is a need to address its deep-seated and underlying causes.

The crises of 2006/2007 resulted in a massive displacement of people, and losses in human lives, property and infrastructure. The armed attacks on the President and the Prime Minister in February 2008 further underscored the fragility of state institutions. Restoring lasting peace and stability; smooth return, rehabilitation and reintegration of IDPs; and strengthening institutions of governance, including the security sector, have been designated as top national priorities. Human security is further endangered by the nature of the country as small developing island-state prone to a number of meteorological and climate hazards. Against this background, Crisis Prevention and Recovery (CPR) programmes have been developed along three main areas of interventions. (1) Social Reintegration and Solidarity which is aligned to the National Recovery Strategy and National Priority 4 on Social Protection and Social Services; (2) programming in Disaster Risk Management will help to facilitate the application of the National Policy on Disaster Risk Management; and (3) Security Sector Development supporting National Priority 5 on Public Safety and Security which will include a review and needs-assessment of the security sector to inform security-sector reform, and support for the development of national capacity for good security sector governance.

The CPR strategic approach is anchored in the United Nations Development Assistance Framework, UNDAF 2009-2013, under the overarching goal of Consolidating Peace and Stability and the overall mandate of the Security Council. It aims to address the structural causes of conflict and natural disasters; the dynamic relationship between conflict prevention, peace building, and human and national security; and the ‘relief to development' transition. In the Country Programme Action Plan 2009-2013, CPR outcomes addressed are 1) strengthening basic foundations for post-crisis security, conflict analysis and resolution, and social cohesion; and 2) building national capacity for restoring the foundations for development following conflict or disaster, ensuring active female participation and access to decision-making.

The CPR programmes are aligned with the NRS, and the 2009 National Priorities 4 (Social Protection and Social Services) and 5 (Public Safety and Security), and implemented in close partnership with the Ministry of Social Solidarity, the Vice-Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Security and Defence, the Parliament and the Office of the President and national/international NGOs. Partnerships with national counterparts have been developed through regular consultations and coordination, Government involvement in project design and implementation, its leadership in planning and decision-making in the framework of Project Management Boards, and facilitating the integration of project developed mechanisms and expertise in national programmes and existing organisational structures.

UNDP is working closely with UNMIT and other UN agencies on the reintegration of IDPs, Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Disaster Risk Management. The relationships are managed through regular coordination and consultation to insure coherence and complementarity of UNCT interventions, and are governed by the unit/agency’s mandate, niche and value-added to Government-led processes. UNDP has participated in the multi-stakeholder Humanitarian Coordination Committee (HCC) and contributed to contingency and operational planning for response to urgent humanitarian and early recovery needs through the provision of needed CPR expertise and regular return on information. UNDP has also taken up a coordination role in the Early Recovery Cluster currently under development, within the framework of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Timor-Leste. The CPR Unit is also representing UNDP on the SSR and the UNCT Gender Thematic Working Groups.