Peacebuilding is a broad and poorly defined field of research. The
term is often associated with the 'Agenda for Peace' presented by UN
Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali in 1992. A distinction is here
made between peace-making, which aims to resolve conflicts, peace-keeping,
which is to preserve the state of peace in the first phase after fighting
has stopped, and peace-building, which entails rebuilding the institutions
and infrastructure of nations torn by civil war and strife. Arguably,
the latter would include strategies to develop trust and build confidence
among communities, particularly at the local level.
In Afghanistan a number of organisations has attempted to address the
various dimensions of peacebuilding. The United Nations has for many
years been engaged in peace negotiations, notably leading to the Geneva
Agreement of 1987 and the Bonn Agreement of 2001, while since the mid-1990s
various UN organisations have had programme activities designed to build
peace in Afghanistan. NGOs started debating their role in relation to
increasing conflict or at least the principle of 'do no harm' from 1994
onwards. Several NGO employees later contributed to this discourse and
went on to establish separate organisations to enhance such initiatives,
such as the Cooperation for Peace and Unity (CPAU).
