DDR is a process through which members of armed forces and groups are supported to lay down their weapons and return to civilian life. The objective of an integrated DDR process is to contribute to security and stability in post-conflict environments. Equally, DDR processes can contribute to creating an environment in which peace processes, political and social reconciliation, and access to livelihoods can be enacted, thereby enabling recovery and development towards sustaining peace. Disarming and demobilizing ex-combatants is a highly visible and political process that can increase public confidence in the peace process. It can therefore be seen as integral to consolidating peace and promoting stability.
The UN defines disarmament as the collection, documentation, control and disposal of the small arms, ammunition, explosives, and light and heavy weapons of combatants and often also of the civilian population. Disarmament also includes the development of responsible weapons management programmes.
Key UN Policies & Guidance
UN International Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Standards (revised 2019)
Demobilization is defined as the formal and controlled discharge of active combatants from the armed forces or other armed groups. In general, a differentiated approach which takes into account the specific needs of groups such as women, children and people living with disabilities should be adopted.
The first stage of demobilization can extend from the processing of individual combatants in temporary centres to the massing of troops in camps designated for this purpose (e.g. cantonment sites, encampments, assembly areas or barracks). The second stage comprises reinsertion – a support package provided to the demobilized.
Reinsertion is a form of transitional assistance to help cover the basic needs of ex-combatants and their families and can include the provision of transitional safety allowances, food, clothing, shelter, medical services, short-term education, training, employment and tools.
Reintegration is the process by which ex-combatants acquire civilian status and gain sustainable employment and an income. Reintegration is essentially a social and economic process with an open time frame that primarily takes place in communities at the local level. It is part of the general development of a country and a national responsibility, but often necessitates long-term external assistance.
When it comes to DDR processes, the local population, ex-combatants and the host government all have different expectations and agendas, and the peacekeeping mission will always be expected to deliver more than time and capacity allow. The key is to balance what is possible against what the stakeholders believe should be possible within a given time. Public information and community-sensitization campaigns will ensure that affected communities and participating groups receive accurate information on DDR processes. Messages should be designed appropriately for different audiences and employ many different and locally appropriate means of communication.
DDR programmes are viable when certain preconditions exist, such as: (a) a peace agreement and/or a negotiated ceasefire that provides a framework for DDR; (b) trust in the peace process; (c) willingness of the conflict parties to engage in DDR; and (d) a minimum guarantee of security. Increasingly, these conditions are not always present; in those instances, missions can support or pave the way for a fuller DDR programme by employing a number of DDR-related tools (see Box: Tools related to disarmament, demobilization and reintegration).
4.6.1 Operational activities
The operational activities undertaken by the mission to support this output include:
- Establishing a strategic framework for UN engagement in DDR.
- Developing an operational plan, including a division of labour, in coordination with UN agencies and national actors.
- Identifying the different categories of persons such as women associated with armed forces or armed groups, children associated with armed forces or armed groups, foreign fighters, and people living with disabilities, to plan and prepare for tailored and specific support.
- Securing funding, particularly for the reintegration phase.
Tools related to disarmament, demobilization and reintegration
Pre-disarmament, demobilization and reintegration
Pre-disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (pre-DDR) is a local-level transitional stabilization measure designed for those who are eligible for a DDR programme. Pre-DDR can be initiated when the implementation of a DDR programme is delayed.
Transitional weapons and ammunition management
Transitional weapons and ammunition management may include (but is not limited to) weapons collection in exchange for community development projects, and support for the safer management of weapons and ammunition by communities.
Community violence reduction
Community violence reduction is a bottom-up approach that helps to eliminate the main drivers of violence in communities by providing alternatives to recruitment into armed groups and building social cohesion. It includes a wide range of activities from labour-intensive projects to community dialogue forums.
DDR support to mediation
DDR practitioners can provide support to the drafting of DDR provisions in ceasefires and political agreements. They can also make proposals on the design and implementation of DDR programmes, provide advice on how to engage armed forces and groups on DDR issues, and contribute to the attainment of agreements.
DDR support to transitional security arrangements
DDR practitioners can provide support to the establishment of security-related confidence building measures as part of ongoing negotiations, ceasefire or peace agreements. This can include the temporary establishment of legitimate non-state security providers or of mixed patrols and units made up of both state and non-state armed forces and groups.
Source: Integrated DDR Standards
4.6.2 Benchmarks
Short-term
- Mechanisms established under civilian lead to maximize national ownership.
- Funding secured to enable execution of the process; technical experts available to provide support; and key sites secured and/ or constructed.
- Public information and other outreach programmes conducted.
- Security guarantees coordinated with the host government to provide adequate security.
- Planning for reintegration undertaken.
- Monitoring and evaluation tools developed.
Medium-term
- Public order restored.
- Decrease in the number of incidents involving the use of prohibited weapons.
- Programme is supported by the majority of the key factions, communities into which ex-combatants have been reintegrated and the general public.
- Re-recruitment of ex-combatants is prevented, and first-time recruitment of at-risk youth is prevented.
- Traffic and movement of weapons and related materiel are under control.
- Border controls in place to prevent influx of new weapons and materiel.
Long-term
- Government has control of national security forces and their use of force.
- Weapons controls enforced in accordance with the rule of law.
- Ex-combatants are largely reintegrated.
- State stockpiles of weapons secured to prevent leakage of weapons into society.
4.6.3 Responsibilities and coordination
Political will among the national parties concerned is an absolute prerequisite for the success of DDR programmes, and the SRSG should actively foster political support for DDR among key stakeholders. The SRSG and MLT should support the programme in accordance with established working mechanisms and in collaboration with the relevant UN and external partners, including key donors. Public information efforts carried out by the mission’s strategic communications and public information department is essential.
Since many local and international implementation partners may be both delivering humanitarian assistance to civilians and provide support for DDR, coordinated planning between humanitarian and DDR programmes is important. DDR occurs in multiple and overlapping planning frameworks. Where peacebuilding and recovery involve a number of national and international stakeholders, the DDR process should be part of national and international recovery strategies. UN Country Teams, the World Bank, the IMF, bilateral donors and national authorities must all be part of the coordination process.
4.6.4 Resources
The mission’s DDR component should include staff with specialized expertise (e.g. planning, monitoring and evaluation, logistics, gender mainstreaming and child protection). Military and police liaison officers should also be seconded to the DDR component. In peacekeeping operations, the military component should be able to contribute to a DDR programme in a number of ways (e.g. through logistical support, provision of security, information gathering and provision of specialized weapons and ammunition management expertise). Full engagement by the Mission Support section in DDR programmes is also essential.
Some partners’ ability to assist may be limited by their mandate. Many humanitarian and development organizations, for instance, cannot work with combatants until they have been demobilized. Careful consideration should be given to how best to make use of such partners’ assistance while respecting their mandates or other factors that may limit their work.
In a peacekeeping context, funding from peacekeeping assessed contributions can be used to cover disarmament and demobilization (including reinsertion) operations, while voluntary contributions from donors cover reintegration activities. This diversity of funding sources has at times resulted in a gap between disarmament and demobilization – both relatively easy to fund, plan and implement – and reintegration, which is dependent on willingness of donors and on expertise and conditions that are not always present in a timely manner in a post-conflict environment. This gap can be minimized through DDR-related programmatic activities (e.g. community violence-reduction projects), and by ensuring long-term reintegration programmes are properly planned with donors, and adequately resourced from the outset.
The inclusion of reinsertion funding as a part of demobilization allows assessed contributions to be used to provide participants with transitional assistance for a period of up to one year. The goal of ensuring that warring factions can return to civilian life may require direct assistance for demobilized combatants as well as local communities.
4.6.5 Challenges and risks
- Lack of political will and/or host government does not accept ownership of the programme.
- Lack of comprehensive peace agreement/political settlement; not all armed groups are party to the peace agreement.
- Relationship with the host government on the issue of child soliders may need to be managed carefully, particularly if state security forces include children.
- Girls may be recruited by armed forces for combat or support roles; their gender and place in society mean they are vulnerable to consequences such as rape, sexual violence, pregnancy and stigma that may be overlooked in demobilization efforts.
- Military and police components, which may be authorized to use force, may not have clear guidance or training on what to do when engaging with child soldiers using lethal force.
- Combatants do not sign up to DDR.
- National actors/local communities have limited capacity to support reintegration.
- DDR benefits are perceived as inequitable.
- Disarmed and demobilized factions possess inadequate skills for reintegration, and there is inadequate funding for reintegration.
- Supply of arms and related materiel cannot be controlled.
- Security of demobilized belligerents and their families cannot be guaranteed, and reinsertion programmes appear to reward ex-combatants in preference to their victims.
4.6.6 Considerations
Providing credible security guarantees at the expense of other mission mandate priorities
The provision of credible security guarantees is essential if combatants are to give up their weapons. The peacekeeping force should have the capacity to provide security throughout all phases of DDR, not least at cantonment sites as well as the home communities of demobilized combatants, while paying close attention to the balance of power among factions. This must be balanced against the other demands on the mission’s security resources, such as POC. International support can lend credibility to these efforts by overseeing disarmament and demobilization or participating in a national oversight commission to ensure that disarmament rates among rivals are comparable. This support should also ensure that disarmament violations are investigated and corrected.
Complete or conditional disarmament
Complete disarmament may not be immediately acceptable to all parties. Ideally, the extent of disarmament should have been addressed during the drafting of the relevant agreements. A broad range of short- and long-term activities should accompany this process, such as community-based weapons collection and control programmes, weapons destruction, the re-establishment of domestic legal systems to control and regulate the possession, production and supply of weapons, and securing stockpiles to prevent the leakage of arms into society.
Balancing accountability and stability
Coordination and sequencing of transitional justice and DDR programmes begins with an understanding of how the two processes can interact positively in the short term in ways that, at a minimum, do not hinder their respective objectives of accountability and stability.
Reintegration and local capacity
While international actors and donors often show great enthusiasm for disarmament and demobilization programmes, their commitment to the long and costly reintegration process may be less certain or too hesitant. Shortages of resources have frequently hampered reintegration efforts in the past. Successful
reintegration requires the prompt and sustained commitment of financial and technical assistance over many years. Another reintegration challenge involves preparing and convincing host communities to accept ex-combatants into their neighbourhoods. In particular, programmes should avoid displacing women who may have assumed head-of-household responsibilities during the conflict.
Inclusive or exclusive treatment
While ex-combatants may need special attention to prevent them from becoming a destabilizing factor, paying exclusive attention to them risks generating resentment in the broader population.
Other groups, such as refugees, IDPs, women and children, require substantial social and economic support. Security should be balanced with equity. As far as possible, strategies for ex-combatants should be integrated with broader strategies to address resettlement and rehabilitation for displaced populations, reconciliation efforts, the rule of law and governance issues. This will also help prevent ex-combatants being stigmatized or isolated from the rest of the community. The peacekeeping mission runs the risk of losing its impartiality if this task is not performed carefully.
Balancing rapid disarmament and a long-term approach
The long-term approach required of DDR is sometimes offset by the short-term political or security imperative to rapidly disarm combatants that pose an immediate threat to peace. If disarmament is rushed and not planned carefully, it could have serious negative consequences at a later stage, especially if reintegration is not well planned and resourced.
Demobilization and reintegration of child soldiers in the state security sector
This may be a sensitive topic with the host government. In many conflict and post-conflict contexts, children may have been forcibly recruited to serve in the national armed forces. Similarly, other armed groups are likely to rely on children. While the peacekeeping mission has a responsibility to report any grave violations, it will need to consider whether, and if so how, it engages with the state security sector where these violations are taking place.