Being born, bred and raised in Pakistan; it is natural for me to get intrigued by the concept of conflict assessment within the program cycle of Pakistan, since its independence in 1947 from the British, has been has been repetitively tested by groups based on nationalism, regional separatism, religious fundamentalism and political ideology. This instability has been reflected in politics, where democracy has been weakened by corruption or disturbed by episodes of military rule. Till today, our country faces conflicts, both international and domestic and that is predominantly the reason why I feel that conflict assessment is a tool which needs to adequately be implied in Pakistan.
Conflict assessment is the first step in the course of conflict management and resolution. According to Human Security Unit (2009) conducting an analysis is necessary to design a design a human security programme which in actual addresses the real needs and vulnerabilities of the affected population and accordingly design strategies that will improve the socio economic conditions of the vulnerable community. A comprehensive conflict assessment will help the beneficiaries and the evaluator. Research has established that the key elements of conflict analysis (Safer World, 2004) are the conflict profile actors, causes and dynamics. Conflict profile provides a description of the context within which the human security intervention will be positioned.
I consider that if the end goal is to reduce conflict, it is binding to comprehend what’s going on in the context, strengthen relationships between all stakeholders and encourage policies which boost equality and inclusion. This is where conflict assessment helps; it assists us too understand the context which subsequently helps us design human secure interventions.