Civil Society’s role in Security Sector Reform in Lebanon An asymmetric partnership despite a growing working relationship with security services

By Karim El Mufti

February 2015

Good governance, transparency and civic engagement are prerequisites for an effective security service, which manages to constructively involve citizens and ensure an inclusive provision of security. Civil society organizations (CSOs) are growingly playing a role in relaying efficiency and oversight demands and supporting the Security Sector Institutions in specific areas. In Lebanon, the civil society is still far from inclusive forms of partnership, although more and more NGOs are engaging in specific aspects of Security Sector Reform (SSR) such as protection missions, prison reform, rights of marginalized groups, Gender based violence (GBV) and training services.   

For the purpose of this paper, SSR will be referred to as defined by Governance and Social Development Resource Centre in its Security Sector Reform Guide: “the Security is a core aspect of the vulnerability of the poor. Unprofessional, inefficient and unaccountable security institutions threaten human rights, democratic politics and the achievement of poverty reduction goals. Security sector reform (SSR) aims to develop a secure environment based on development, rule of law, good governance and local ownership of security actors. In countries at risk of conflict or in post- conflict contexts, SSR can be of central importance for stability or conflict prevention”.

Read the full paper on this link.