Chapter 2 - Living in conflict-affected areas

Children and youth in conflict-affected areas

Children, youth and conflict: overview

Millions of children and youth are caught up in violent conflict and suffer from its devastating impacts. Many are killed as a by-product of general disorder and violence, whereas in some situations, for example, in genocide, children and youth may be specifically targeted. They are also targeted and recruited, often but not always forcibly, as child combatants. Research has shown that war-affected children and youth, regardless of whether they have served as combatants, may suffer from severe emotional distress.

Literature on children and youth has tended to concentrate on their portrayals as passive victims or as active security threats, in the case of youth. There is increasing attention, however, on the need to focus as well on the resilience of children and youth and on their positive contributions to peace processes and reconstruction activities.

Conflict also disrupts children’s access to services such as health and education. Education is increasingly accepted as an integral part of humanitarian response in conflict and post-conflict situations. It can help restore normalcy, safeguard the most vulnerable, provide psychosocial care, promote tolerance, unify divided communities and begin the process of reconstruction and peacebuilding. However, both providing and accessing education in such contexts is particularly problematic.

Sommers, M., 2006, ‘Youth and Conflict – A Brief Review of the Available Literature’, USAID, Washington
How can programmes help youth in conflict and post-conflict situations? This literature review illuminates key themes, trends and prospects for war-affected youth and the programmes that aim to assist them. While war’s effects on youth are complex, resilience is a prominent shared characteristic. Effective youth interventions require increased participation of female youth, better engagement with youth to determine and address their precise needs, quality programme evaluations and more dissemination of programme documents.
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UNDESA, 2003, ‘Youth and Conflict’, Chapter 14 of the World Youth Report, United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, New York
How can youth involvement in conflict be addressed? This study shows that youth are often a targeted group during conflict. It argues that traditional prevention mechanisms have proved top-heavy and ineffective in addressing the root causes of conflict and problems leading to the escalation of tensions. In tackling conflict, the international community must go beyond the narrow approach determined by top-level ideals of peace and embrace cross-sectoral approaches. 
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UNICEF, 1996, ‘Impact of Armed Conflict on Children’, UNICEF, New York
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UNDP, 2006, ‘Youth and Violent Conflict: Society and Development in Crisis?’, United Nations Development Programme, New York
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UNESCO, 2011, ‘The Hidden Crisis: Armed conflict and education’, Education for All, Global Monitoring Report, UNESCO
To what extent are the goals of Education for All being achieved in countries affected by armed conflict? This report shows that there is not only a lack of provision of education but also a failure to protect education systems and their students, and to devote sufficient funds to education in reconstruction and peacebuilding programmes. It argues that educational challenges in conflict-affected states are largely unreported, and that education in such contexts merits a far more central place on the international development agenda.
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Child combatants, mobilisation and war-affected youth

The precise number of child combatants globally is unknown. The figure most frequently cited is 300,000, most of which are adolescents. Key negative impacts for combatants have been found to be psychological distress concentrated in those that experience the most violence; loss of human capital due to time away from civilian education and work experience; and social exclusion, as former child fighters are considered tainted and impure. 

The literature has tended to focus on child combatants as boys who are abducted and coerced into fighting. The role of girls in fighting forces is largely neglected, and girls have consequently been excluded from recovery programmes. There has also been limited examination of situations in which children and youth are not abducted but are mobilised in other ways. Some recent work has looked at youth agency and the role of the desire for status and a sense of empowerment. New research has shown that children and youth in displacement camps may become motivated to engage in political violence due to frustrations and the distinctiveness of life in a camp and the politicisation of everyday experiences. 

Reintegration packages have generally focused on education, income generation and livelihoods. Youth often prefer support for income generation and livelihoods as they find it difficult to return to school with children much younger than them. In order to counter the social exclusion of former child combatants, initiatives have also included community based projects in order to make the receiving village more receptive to the former combatants’ reintegration.

Blattman, C., 2006, 'The Consequences of Child Soldiering', Households in Conflict Network Working Paper 22, The Institute of Development Studies, Brighton
Hundreds of thousands of child combatants fought in recent civil wars in Africa, yet little is known about the long-term impact of child soldiering. Using data collected in Uganda, this paper finds that, contrary to existing evidence, that the major consequences of child soldiering are educational and economic. Exposure to conflict also seems to increase political participation by abductees, and the psychological impacts of war appear to be moderate and concentrated in a minority. More research is needed to inform evidence-based post-conflict policies and programs.
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Denov, M., 2007, 'Girls in Fighting Forces: Moving Beyond Victimhood', Canadian International Development Agency, Ottawa
Girls within armed groups have generally been neglected by scholars, governments and policymakers. This paper traces the experiences of girls in armed conflict in Angola, Sierra Leone, Mozambique and Uganda. It finds that girls in fighting forces are rendered invisible and marginalised during and after conflict, although they are fundamentally important to armed groups. They experience victimisation, perpetration and insecurity, but are also active agents and resisters.
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Hart J., 2008, 'Displaced Children's Participation in Political Violence: Towards Greater Understanding of Mobilisation', Conflict, Security and Development, Vol. 8, No. 3, pp. 277-293
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Housden, O., 2009, ‘In a Weak State: Status and Reintegration of Children Associated with Armed forces and Armed Groups (CAAFAG) in Nepal’, IPCS Research Paper, Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi
Despite Nepal’s 2006 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) targeting rehabilitation of children from armed group associations, the government has failed to implement satisfactory reintegration. This paper reviews the current status of the reintegration of Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (CAAFAG). State failure to tackle deep-rooted inequality and structural problems continues to allow armed movements to recruit marginalised groups, including children, and consequently flourish.
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McIntyre, A. (ed.), 2004, ‘Invisible Stakeholders: Children and War in Africa’, Institute for Security Studies, South Africa
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For discussion and resources on gender-based violence against women and girls, see the section on women in conflict-affected areas in this guide.

Dissatisfied youth and youth bulges

Youth bulge refers to “extraordinarily large youth cohorts relative to the adult population” (Urdal 2007). A large pool of young people is not inherently destabilising; however, some analysts argue that there is a correlation between youth bulges and political violence, in particular under conditions of economic stagnation. While contested, the understanding is that young people – particularly young men, who are jobless and alienated, and have few outlets for positive engagement, are ready recruits for those seeking to mobilise violence. Thus, it is argued that more attention needs to be paid to providing employment or education opportunities to youth, particularly during times of economic decline. Limits on migration may increase the risk of violence in some countries with large youth bulges if it is not compensated for by increased domestic employment opportunities.

The countries expected to experience high relative youth populations in years to come are mostly situated in the Middle East, Africa and parts of Asia.

Urdal, H., 2007, 'The Demographics of Political Violence: Youth Bulges, Insecurity and Conflict' Chapter 6 in Too Poor for Peace? Global Poverty, Conflict and Security in the 21st Century, eds.  L. Brainard and D. Chollet, Brookings Institution Press, Washington, DC, pp. 90-100
This chapter reports study findings suggesting that demographic ‘youth bulges’ may provide both a motive and an opportunity for political violence. These bulges increase the risk of internal armed conflict, terrorism, and rioting, but the conditions under which they are most volatile seem to differ. Bulges appear to particularly increase the risk of terrorism and riots under conditions of educational and economic stress, but to provide greater opportunities for armed conflict in autocracies and greater motives in democracies.
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Hilker, L. M., Fraser E. M., 2009, 'Youth Exclusion, Violence, Conflict and Fragile States', Report prepared for DFID by Social Development Direct, London
What factors contribute to youth exclusion and increase the likelihood of youth engagement in violence? How can DFID effectively address issues of youth exclusion and violence? This report examines existing evidence and analysis on the links between youth exclusion, violence, conflict and fragile states. It highlights factors which can contribute to youth violence, and makes recommendations for DFID's work on youth exclusion and violence.
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For additional resources on youth and social exclusion, see the GSDRC’s social exclusion topic guide.

Participation of children and youth in recovery and peacebuilding

There is growing recognition that children and youth need to be engaged in positive activities; and that they have much to contribute to peace processes, reconstruction and peacebuilding initiatives. Children and youth have already been making effective contributions to various programmes, including those focused, for example, on rebuilding social relationships, developing cultures of peace, rehabilitating education systems, and promoting livelihoods and economic recovery.

Involvement in such activities can counter the traumatising and destructive experiences of violence that war-affected children and youth have undergone. More broadly, it provides positive and constructive roles for youth that render them less susceptible to mobilisation to violence.

USAID, 2005, ‘Youth and Conflict: A Toolkit for Intervention’, USAID, Washington
Why do young people participate in conflict? What can be done to steer young people away from violence? This toolkit examines youth participation in violent conflict and draws out lessons for development programming. It asserts that although a large proportion of young people is not necessarily destabilising, those (particularly young men) who are uprooted, intolerant, jobless and have few opportunities could represent a ready pool of recruits for ethnic, religious and political extremists. Avoiding future conflict means drawing positively on the energy and capacity of youth as the leaders of tomorrow’s societies.
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Fischer, M., 2006, ‘The Need for Multi-Dimensional Youth Work: Education, Interethnic Networking and Income Generation’, in Peacebuilding and Civil Society in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Ten Years after Dayton, ed. M. Fischer, Lit Verlag, Münster 
How can youth in postconflict societies become a catalyst for positive change? This chapter gives an overview of the challenges facing youth work in Bosnia-Herzegovina. It presents the ‘Young People Build the Future’ project, which uses a multidimensional approach to try to meet some of these challenges. An integrated combination of initiatives that provide training, empowerment, peace education, vocational training and income generation opportunities is essential.
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