Post-conflict land administration, facilitator of post-conflict state building

Land and its administration are always negatively affected during conflicts and in post-conflict contexts. This has been confirmed both in the literature and in practice. This research has shown that if land and its administration are neglected or not properly addressed after the end of a conflict, they can be a cause for a renewed armed conflict and an obstacle in the rebuilding of a post-conflict society. The author’s initial research on the topic revealed that there is a relation between land administration and post-conflict state building. Therefore, the main research objective was to identify which interventions in land administration and under which circumstances facilitate post-conflict state building. In order to achieve the main research objective, a qualitative research approach was applied on two main case studies: Kosovo and Rwanda. Findings from the main case studies were supported with three supportive case studies: Mozambique, Cambodia and Timor-Leste, by collecting data from the literature. Empirical data and literature were used to set the theoretical propositions as: (1) a framework for rebuilding post-conflict states, and (2) interventions in land administration for post-conflict state building. For the final discussions and for the analytical generalisation correlating analyses were performed in a three-dimensional matrix, where the theoretical propositions (1) and (2) formed a skeleton of the matrix and empirical data from the main case studies constitutes the third dimension. The research first derived general findings on land, conflict and post-conflict contexts and, finally, specific findings were presented as in the framework for rebuilding post-conflict states grouped as: institutional weaknesses, economic and social problems, and serious security problems. Main findings from this research lead to conclusion that the identified interventions in land administration can be seen as facilitators of post-conflict state building.

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