Paper set II: The Challenge of Human Resource Management in Conflict-Prone Situations
PHASE II: DEVELOPING THE HEALTH AND PEACEBUILDING FILTER
The UNSW research led to the development of the
Health and Peace-building Filter. The aim of the Filter was initially to assess whether health-related projects in fragile settings are sensitive to the conflict and cultural environments in which they operate. As development of the Filter has proceeded, it has become apparent that the Filter can, more importantly, be used to assist those working in fragile settings to incorporate appropriate peace-building principles into their efforts.
The Filter was designed to assist project managers to assess the capacity of a project or program to contribute to peacebuilding and enhancing stability in fragile post-conflict settings. It is built upon five key principles: the promotion of cultural sensitivity, conflict sensitivity, social cohesion, social justice and good project governance. The Filter provides a framework for considering these issues when designing and implementing health-related projects and stimulates the user to consider how planning and implementation might be more aligned with peacebuilding objectives. It provides a simple format for identifying areas of the project requiring further attention. The Filter adopts a ‘do no harm’ approach drawing upon a range of peacebuilding principles and good development practice.
Alongside the Filter, a range of associated materials have been developed, notably a
Companion Manual written to elucidate the issues covered by the Filter and a Learning Module on health-sector contributions for AusAID’s
Peace, Conflict and Development Learning Package. We have also written an article entitled,
Beyond the Logframe: A new tool for examining health and peacebuilding initiatives, submitted to
Development in Practice, which compares the Filter with the traditional log-frame, often used in planning development projects.
Thanks to an immense amount of in-country support in Sri Lanka, East Timor and the Solomon Islands, the research team has completed all three country pilots and has submitted their final report to AusAID.
PRESENTATIONS AT CONFERENCES
McMaster - Lancet Challenge Conference: "Peace Through Health: Learning from Action"
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada; 6-8 May 2005
Two of the team members presented portions of this project's work during plenary sessions at this conference. Prof. Anthony Zwi, presented on the issue of trust, an important indicator in conflict-affected societies. “In situations of massive oppression and violence, the reestablishment of trust is a vital value in rebuilding society. This may necessitate the health sector’s examining its own role in the violence, as was done in South Africa” (Zwi 2005). Anne Bunde-Birouste presented on the development of the Health and Peace-building Filter and fielded various questions and comments regarding this project.
For more information on this conference, please visit the following website:
http://www.humanities.mcmaster.ca/peace-health/Conf2005/Conf-2005.htm
Australian Health Promotion Association 16th National Conference 2006:"Health Promotion Dreaming: Shifting the Sands"
Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia; 23-26 April 2006
Anne Bunde Birouste presented a keynote address on “Engaging in Peacebuilding.” She also ran a workshop entitled: Health and Peacebuilding Filter: A Hands-on Workshop.
For more information, please vist the following website:
http://www.healthpromotion.org.au/conferences.php
Seventh International Conference on Ethics and International Development:“Accountability, Responsibility, and Integrity in Development: The Ethical Challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa and Beyond”
Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda; 19-22 July 2006
Natalie Grove presented a paper entitled: “Beyond the log frame: A new tool for examining Health & Peacebuilding Initiatives.”
For more information, please vist the following website:
http://www.dev-ethics-uganda.org/
International Health: Research Informing Policy and Practice Symposium
Darling Harbour Convention Centre; Sydney, Australia; 26 September 2006
Professor Anthony Zwi and Emily Waller will present “Health and Peacebuilding Filter: Principles guiding policy and practice in conflict-affected settings” at this symposium organised jointly by the International Health Special Interest Group (SIGIH) of the Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA) and the Australian Coalition for Global Health Research (ACGHR) in association with the PHAA Annual Conference.
For more information, please visit the following website:
http://www.phaa.net.au/
FEEDBACK
We welcome feedback on all aspects of the HPBF and the Companion Manual and are interested to hear how people are using these materials in their work. We are especially keen to learn about the ways in which people adapt these tools to meet local needs. Please contact Anthony Zwi or Anne Bunde-Birouste at the addresses provided on the right-hand column of this webpage.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
A number of people provided valuable support and insights to the development and testing of the Filter and Companion Manual. The Team is particularly grateful to the many people living and working in the three countries involved in the piloting of the draft versions of the Filter: Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste, and the Solomon Islands. For purposes of confidentiality, we cannot list either the projects or the individuals by name. However, many project staff and community members welcomed us, shared their experiences of health and peace-building, and provided valuable feedback on the tool. They were gracious, insightful and inspiring.
The project team would also like to express our appreciation to those AusAID post staff members who supported this work. Their feedback has contributed to shaping these documents.
In addition to the in-country people, a number of colleagues across the globe provided insights and support. Particular appreciation to : Palitha Abeykoon, Neil Arya, Kate Berry, Ilse Blignault, Ken Bush, Esau Kekuabata, Cath Lamb, David Maclaren, George Malefoasi, Jan Ritchie, Joanna Santa Barbara, Dr. Sivarajah, Dr. Joao Soares Martins, Rob Stevens, Daniel Tarantola, Kolitha Wickramage, as well as participants of the McMaster Peace Through Health conference workshop and respondents to our questionnaire.
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