Conflict data has helped the Bangsamoro peace and subnational state building by filling the critical gap in information that could increase the pressure for an immediate end to hostilities, uncover the true cost of war, and institutionalize a political settlement for peace and stability to endure. However, few have turned to conflict data except for media purposes. The developmental role of conflict data has not been explored as much—why is this the case? The paper addresses the incentives and disincentives in using conflict data by subregional authorities with fragile political authority and the dilemmas faced by development actors who need to account for the peace building impact of their projects and programs. The paper posits a way out of these dilemmas and a better method for determining peacebuilding impact.
Professor Francisco J. “Pancho” Lara Jr. PhD is a Professor at the University of the Philippines and Senior Peace and Conflict Adviser (Asia) to International Alert UK. He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of the Philippines, and both an MSc (Master of Science) and PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) in International Development from the London School of Economics. He was research associate at the LSE Crisis States Research Centre (2006-2010); taught classes at the LSE Development Studies Institute (2006-2008); and wrote on political economy issues in Indonesia and the Philippines for the LSE-IDEAS Emerging Markets Bulletin from 2007-2009. He authored the book, Insurgents, Clans, and States: Political Legitimacy and Resurgent Conflict in Muslim Mindanao, published by the Ateneo de Manila University Press (2014). He also co-edited and wrote the research methodology chapter of the book on Mindanao’s shadow economies and their links to violent conflict entitled: Out of the Shadows: Violent Conflict and the Real Economy of Mindanao (2016) that won the Philippines National Book Award for the Social Sciences in the same year. In 2021, he co-wrote the chapter on qualitative methodologies in researching smuggling and illicit cross-border trade entitled “Lorries and Ledgers: Describing and Mapping Smuggling in the Field,” in the volume: The Routledge Handbook of Smuggling (2021).
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Nassef Manabilang Adiong, PhD 