As illustrated by recent spates of political violence, numerous civil wars and uprisings continue to claim thousands of casualties, result in large-scale refugee flows, and cause economic distress. Recent scholarship has pointed to the detrimental impact of economic and political inequalities across ethnic groups on political stability and peace prospects; however, the precise mechanisms leading to political mobilization along ethnic lines remains unclear.
Drawing on the combined knowledge of scholars drawn from seven renowned research institutions across the world, this project sets out to study the linkage between group-level inequality and ethnic conflict in fragile states. At the same time, it aims at increasing knowledge transfer to policy-makers and other key stakeholders through evidence-based policy recommendations and at strengthening research institutions in the partners’ countries.
The project is funded by the Swiss Programme for Research on Global Issues for Development (R4D), a joint initiative of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).
