Country/Date: Mali/The Netherlands, 30 April 2015
Partner: Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The Policy and Operations Evaluation Department of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has commissioned this exploratory study for the purpose of the evaluation of the Dutch foreign policy in promoting the international legal order.
Even within the One UN ambition, there are two initiatives that are not fully compatible and cause confusion among UN organisations in the field. Delivering as One is limited to development and humanitarian aspects. The Integrated Strategic Planning intended to broaden the approach to include peace and security operations. However, sensitivities towards this approach remain, both with developing member states (due to sovereignty and non-intervention principles) and with the humanitarian community of the UN (due to neutrality and other principles).
The Netherlands has played an active role in supporting opportunities of One UN at international level, such as the Global Focal Point for Justice, Police and Corrections, and rendering it impactful for the field, such as in Mali.
This context is certainly not an obvious one to achieve progress with regard to longer term goals such as One UN. However, as the example shows, even in those circumstances there are opportunities for working in a more integrated way. It was important to start small and in a flexible mode, as civil-military cooperation is not easy and even more difficult in a unpredictable place like Mali. The incentives provided by donors, such as the Netherlands, are important in this respect.
Moreover, given the importance of national ownership, a solid partnership with the Malian government could prove helpful in embedding the integrated approach in the national strategy on the Rule of Law and in this way contributing to results in this key sector.
written by M. Balt