event 01 Mar 2023

Frexus Project // Training of local actors on the integration of the «Do No Harm» approach in natural resource management

Governance aspects have been identified as key conflict factors in the Frexus project intervention areas, training of local actors in natural resource conflict management and prevention has been undertaken. Training workshops on the « Do No Harm» approach was conducted in each intervention country. These trainings enabled the actors to acquire an approach and effective tools for the management of land, natural resources, and ecosystems.

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Do No Harm

Training workshops on the « Do No Harm» approach was conducted in each intervention country. These trainings enabled the actors to acquire an approach and effective tools for the management of land, natural resources, and ecosystems. These workshops have been successfully carried out in Mali, Niger and Chad, thanks in part to the participation of stakeholders from different sectors. « Do No Harm » is an approach recommended for development and humanitarian actions and should be applied systematically.

These workshops enabled participants to understand that each intervention operates in a specific, not a blank, context. They included oral presentations and group exercises to understand and analyse the dividers (sources of conflict) and connectors (factors of peace) in conflicts. This enabled participants to better understand the impact of a project on the conflict in which it intervenes and to see how to mitigate or at least anticipate undesirable negative effects. For example, Frexus partners learned to identify conflict contexts and how natural resource management programmes affect dividers and connectors. This has led to a better understanding of how such interventions also convey "messages" that can reinforce or help reduce conflict. In addition to the projects themselves, the resources transferred by these projects also have an impact on the conflict.

To ensure that the participants understood this new approach and to enable them to apply it in practice, one intervention workshop was organised per country. In these workshops, group work was organised, where participants took examples of conflict in their localities. The participants tried to understand how the « Do No Harm » principle can be applied to these situations and how this could end the conflicts. The workshop provided an environment where stakeholders could exchange ideas and experiences.

The workshops served to correct and appreciate the mistakes made. In addition, through this workshop, stakeholders developed their capacity to manage natural resources within the institutional and community framework.

Do No Harm Workshop in Mali

The « Do no Harm » workshop was celebrated in Mali on the 23 and 24 November 2022 as part of the partnership between the Frexus project and the consultancy firm FAKT.

A dozen structures and organisations in Mali participated in the two-day workshop. Among the various stakeholders were the technical services of the State, local authorities, communal land management commissions, non-governmental organisations, and the umbrella organisations of associations, farmers, herders and fishermen.

Thanks to this workshop, the actors involved in this study understood that conflicts are inevitable for projects carried out in the framework of land, natural resource and ecosystem management. However, they learned how to analyse the causes and different types of conflict, the different stages of conflict development and the different tools for conflict resolution. In conclusion, they discovered that by applying the « Do no Harm » approach, inevitable conflicts between stakeholders can also become factors of progress.

One of the participants in the workshop was Mr. MAIGA, the Director of Operations of the NGO ODI-Sahel, who indicated that thanks to this workshop he felt sufficiently equipped to work effectively in conflict contexts, while helping to mitigate undesirable negative impacts and support local capacities for peace.

© GIZ

Do No Harm Workshop in Niger

The training workshop on the « Do no Harm » approach was organised from the 29 to the 30 November 2022 in Dosso, Niger. It was carried out with the participation of actors who are directly involved in natural resource management at the local level, this training highlighted the importance of changing the perspective in a context characterised by fragility and/or conflict.

The workshop strengthened the capacity of local actors involved in natural resource management and the integration of conflict sensitivity for peaceful conflict management. Participants had the opportunity to be briefed on techniques for identifying different conflict contexts as well as the impacts of programmes on dividers and connectors during the two-day workshop. They analysed dividers and connectors in conflict through oral presentations and group exercises.

© GIZ

This workshop, which builds on the first training for the majority of participants on the integration of the « Do No Harm » approach in the management of conflicts related to natural resources, was marked by a general note of satisfaction from the participants and the presentation of training certificates.

Do No Harm Workshop in Tchad

Organised by the Frexus project in collaboration with FAKT GmbH, from 7 to 8 December at CEFOD in N'Djamena, the « Do No Harm » training workshop was also successfully conducted in Chad. The training focused on capacity building taking into account the concept of context/conflict sensitivity and was attended by about 20 participants, mainly administrative authorities at national level.

© GIZ

The workshop aimed to initiate a process of reflection and learning among the participants in order to include the Do No Harm approach in their work and in their institutions, to strengthen both the methodological capacities and the capacities of the participants to conduct constructive, autonomous and participatory processes of conflict management in their respective institutional and community settings. The interactive debate that followed the presentation allowed participants to share their experiences and to take ownership of the « Do No Harm » approach.

In all three countries, participants thanked the Frexus project, the European Union and the BMZ for their support.

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