Interim Governance Arrangements in Post-Conflict and Fragile Settings

This report provides an understanding of how temporary governance during major political transitions is structured and how it works in practice. Interim governance arrangements are the exercise of public power by an interim executive, and sometimes legislative authority, to conduct governance and reform processes in the context of political unrest or conflict (often following an un-constitutional rupture), with the aim of restoring constitutional order through new or revised institutions (De Groof and Wiebusch 2020: 1–2). During transitional periods, interim governance arrangements are critical, delicate, and prone to collapse. There are numerous cases where arrangements have stalled (e.g. South Sudan 2015–ongoing), been overtaken by the emergence of a new conflict (e.g. Yemen 2014–ongoing), or relapsed back into the former conflict (e.g. Rwanda 1993). This report looks at the major facets, benefits and pitfalls of interim governance arrangements when used for the purpose of conflict resolution and management in negotiated settlements. Many thanks to workshop participants, and especially Sumit Bisarya and Christine Bell for comments on the development of this report.