Civil society during war: the case of Yemen

Elayah, Moosa; Verkoren, Willemijn

doi:10.1080/21647259.2019.1686797

Cited by 16 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…However, religious actors have been recognised by some scholars for their role in war-to-peace transitions (Haynes, 2009; Toft et al, 2011). This parallels a critical turn over the past 2 decades in the study of civil society and peacebuilding, where critics have challenged decisions to avoid traditional or religious authorities in favour of international NGOs or government-funded, technocratic peacebuilding initiatives (Elayah & Verkoren, 2019, p. 4). A body of scholarship emerged to show that religious actors effectively contribute to peace in violent conflicts, and ethical ideals such as fraternity and solidarity can help divided societies emerging from a history of violence (Crocker, 2003; De Juan et al, 2015).…”

Section: Debatesmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…This article modifies and builds on the framework developed by Poskitt and Dufranc (2011) and Elayah and Verkoren (2019). These authors identify a number of challenges faced by CSOs in the context of conflict, including state failure, restrictions on freedom of speech, and the preferences of external donors to show that conflict dampens opportunities for CSOs to influence government policies and achieve social change.…”

Section: Debatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring Kurdish Islamist Civil Society and Conflict in Turkey (2015–2018)

Ozcelik

2021

Journal of Peacebuilding & Development

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This article addresses the role and impact of religious civil society in situations of armed conflict through a case study of Kurdish Islamist civil society organisations and activists in Turkey. The focus is on the period following the collapse of the peace process and resurgence of violence in mid-2015 between Turkish security forces and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (Partiya Karkêrên Kurdistanê). Based on 40 in-depth interviews conducted in the city of Diyarbakir, I identify three main challenges to the effectiveness of religious civil society in peacebuilding processes: (1) relations with the state, (2) legacy and relationship with institutional violence, and (3) advocacy and representation of community needs. This article shows how ethnicity and Islam are shifting, contingent interactions in the construction of Kurdish identity, especially in response to violence. Although the public expression of pro-Kurdish rights claims altered under a securitisation rubric during this period, the demand for a peaceful settlement to the conflict transcends ideological and social differences across many Kurds.

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Section: Debatesmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Debatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Kurdish Islamist Civil Society and Conflict in Turkey (2015–2018)

Ozcelik

2021

Journal of Peacebuilding & Development

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“…Their control begins at the ports, which facilitate their imposition of levies and taxes on shipments, as well as enabling them to seize HA coming into the country (Elayah and Fenttiman 2021 ). This has resulted in Yemen turning into a black hole for HA, where supplies do not go to those who need it, but on the contrary, it reaches through the lobbies of warlords who play the most important role in prolonging and sustaining a war, by financing it (Elayah and Verkoren 2020 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In 2014, the estimated number of Yemeni NGOs was 9996, almost doubling in numbers by 2018 to 18,650. Unfortunately, many of those organizations were established by the different partisan actors for their own political interest, varying from, “Hadi forces, the Southern movement and the Houthis” (Elayah and Verkoren 2020 ) as the number of NGOs in Yemen increased from 9996 in 2014 to 18,650 by 2018, where the different fighting parties use some of those organizations to establish their presence as a “legitimate” party and collect foreign aid through legal channels (Elayah and Verkoren 2020 ). Consequently, food-aid programs fell in the corruption trap as the World Food Program; announced that 1,200,000 kg of food never reached their destination (Kiley et al 2019 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From food to cash assistance: rethinking humanitarian aid in Yemen

Elayah

Gaber

Fenttiman

2022

Int J Humanitarian Action

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Humanitarian aid (HA) is needed in Yemen to cope with the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. However, current practices of distributing aid in the form of food have not had the desired effect; conflict has continued, and war economies are thriving as a result. Thus, this paper proposes the idea of cash assistance as an alternative form of HA. Our empirical analysis of HA in Yemen shows that cash assistance is a more effective and efficient way of distributing aid in comparison to food aid. This is due to food aid being vulnerable to looting by the conflicting factions, enabling funds to be inadvertently captured into the highly problematic war economy dynamic. In comparison, cash assistance targets a wider scope of peoples’ necessities, in a more efficient and effective delivery approach that can be easily tracked by the donors. Cash aid can either be unrestricted, restricted, or conditional. The former allows cash transfer, the second enables vulnerable people to purchase items depending on their needs with vouchers, and the latter links the money distributed with performing a certain task. This allows communities to improve and develop, and it enables individuals to build up their skill sets and have a source of income. This is particularly important for NGOs who are unable to provide the conditions needed to bear their success. The Yemeni people have lost trust in the warring factions, as well as local and international NGOs, due to the lack of effectiveness of current methods of HA distributions due to looting and the risks associated with reaching vulnerable people. Therefore, it has become imperative to restore donor direct HA delivery by providing cash aid as a superior means of food aid in Yemen, to ensure the effectiveness of HA and to improve the lives of those who are suffering, in the long term (This article builds on previous scholarship; see Elayah, M., & Fenttiman, M. (2021). Humanitarian Aid and War Economies: The Case of Yemen. The Economics of Peace and Security Journal, 16(1). This article provides a nuanced and high-quality examination of the conduct of armed groups in Yemen. The analysis of HA in this article “supports the view that it is a significant source of funding for armed groups and consequently that it plays a huge part in allowing the war economy in Yemen to thrive”. Warring groups are often looting HA to distribute it based on partisanship and to sell it on the black market to finance the war effort. They have also attempted to block HA to try and gain control over the humanitarian campaign and receive a cut of the billions of dollars given in foreign assistance. In many cases, HA is distributed through local NGOs that were established by the groups to attract international funds. Others were pre-politicized NGOs that channeled funds to specific regions or particular groups for political and military advantage. It is clear from our analysis that the ability of NGOs to use HA effectively and deliver it to those who deserve it is very limited. NGO’s actions can end up expanding the war economy rather than reducing the effects of war on the poor. Distrust in international bodies and in local and international NGOs has become extremely high among those affected by the war” (Elayah, M., & Fenttiman, M. (2021: p 59)).

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“…8,9 For instance, flooding in the United States over the years has been reported to have caused environmental sanitation concerns 8 while terrorism and war have been an impediment to sewage disposal and sanitation management in Yemen and Syria. 9 Second, economic instability and uncertainties around the world connote that even developed countries, which are able to effectively finance health care, may be unable to maintain hygiene and sanitation in health care in future. [10][11][12] Finally, the assumption that health facilities in developed countries are always able to ensure sanitation in health care can discourage routine monitoring of clinical sanitation, making it less possible for the patient's experience to be enhanced.…”

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confidence: 99%

ADAPTED SERVQUAL: A Health Service Quality Scale Incorporating Indicators of Sanitation and Hygiene

Asiamah

Opuni

Aggrey

et al. 2020

Quality Management in Health Care

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Background and Objectives: Many scales have been developed to measure health care quality over the years, but no scale available today incorporates all important indicators of sanitation and hygiene in health care. This study therefore assessed the psychometric properties of an adapted scale, hereby called ADAPTED SERVQUAL, in an attempt to provide a scale that includes relevant indicators of hospital hygiene and sanitation. Methods: The setting of the study was low-and medium-capacity hospitals in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Patients in wards and outpatient departments in the hospitals participated in the study. We used relevant statistical tools to estimate the psychometric properties of ADAPTED SERVQUAL. To understand the relative importance of the new scale, we compared and related it to a recent scale, HEALTHQUAL. Results: Principal component analysis yielded 6 factors: "tangibles," "reliability," "responsiveness," "assurance," "empathy," and "sanitation and hygiene," which explained 84% of the total variance. ADAPTED SERVQUAL has a good internal consistency (Cronbach α = 0.96). Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the 6-factor solution and produced satisfactory discriminant validity and convergent validity indicators. The adapted scale was highly correlated with all dimensions of HEALTHQUAL, including continuous quality improvement (r ≥0.75, P < .001). In multiple linear regression, the 5 domains of HEALTHQUAL explained 59% of the variance in ADAPTED SERVQUAL (P < .001). Conclusions: The study concluded that 8 items that make up a single factor (ie, sanitation and hygiene) and contribute most of the total variance satisfactorily fit into the SERVQUAL scale as additional indicators of health care quality.

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Civil society during war: the case of Yemen

Cited by 16 publications

References 10 publications

Exploring Kurdish Islamist Civil Society and Conflict in Turkey (2015–2018)

Exploring Kurdish Islamist Civil Society and Conflict in Turkey (2015–2018)

From food to cash assistance: rethinking humanitarian aid in Yemen

ADAPTED SERVQUAL: A Health Service Quality Scale Incorporating Indicators of Sanitation and Hygiene

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