Global Support for Reconstruction

1
Global Support for Reconstruction
Eric Westropp RUSI Presentation 31st October 2006
2
Control Risks Mission

• To enable our clients to succeed
• in complex or hostile business
• environments.

3
Fundamentals

• What is inherently governmental or public sector
  and why ?
• With demand outstripping supply, where best to
  utilize scarce public sector resources ?
• Roles exist for risk management related private
  sector. Stability and development are part of a
  single agenda to create an enabling environment.
• Public sector contracting to risk management
  consultancies and the related private sector is
  growing but in what context ?
• What is it ethical, cost effective and
  professional to hand over to the private sector ?
• How best to retain oversight and public scrutiny
  ?
• How best to partner with other stakeholders?
• What can public and private sectors learn from
  each other?

4
Risk Management and State Building

• State-building and the private sector are
  intertwined. This slide referring to the broader
  private sector such as energy, construction,
  communications, finance and health care.
• Important not to miss the goodwill window.
  Ambassador Paul Bremer Eric it is illegal to
  invest in Iraq. - Baghdad July 2003
• In fragile/vulnerable states and failed states
  investment both internal external is vital but
  creating the ecosystem requires reform measures,
  and anti-corruption both early and continuously.
• International companies are venturing further and
  more deeply into unstable regions but conflict
  sensitivity is required so that commercial
  activity alleviates and does not contribute to
  conflict. Collective initiatives are required to
  keep predatory companies at bay and create a
  positive ecosystem.
• Where these conditions begin to apply and
  citizens gain confidence the economy starts to
  flourish. A current example is the Kurdistan
  region of Iraq.

5
Risk Management Related Private Sector Integration

• Climate is changing to enable the already
  organized and managed resources of risk
  management consultancies such as CR to be
  utilized as a national resource. Some areas for
  expansion include
• Greater use of their ability to put together and
  manage long term programmes.
• These programmes not just downstream services
  such as training. Consultancies with
  implementation capabilities can provide services
  both up and down.
• Possible to coincide programmes of public sector
  reform and anti corruption with threat analysis
  security programmes for international and local
  business. Algeria is a good example where
  consultants are helping with both public and
  private sectors.
• Risk management companies can assist in the
  creation of an ecosystem where private sector
  commercial investors can not only do no harm but
  do good in a coordinated manner

6
What the Risk Management Sector can Contribute (1)

• Public Sector Reform programmes. Including the
  consultancy and implementation in partnership.
• Anti-corruption programmes.
• Cross departmental and holistic government crisis
  management programmes.
• Support to bring in energy, communications,
  construction, health care and finance etc.
• Longevity, desk officers have to return,
  officials turn over every 18 months. Companies
  can manage holistic projects for a number of
  years from concept to implementation under donor
  oversight and with measurable deliverables.
• Transfer of skills gleaned advising commercial
  clients in hostile environments.
• Assistance in bringing these skills speedily to
  local businesses. Officials and NGOs can be
  hesitant in their involvement with and
  understanding of local businesses. Private sector
  companies will often have been working in the
  local business environment for years.

7
What the Risk Management Sector can Contribute
(2)

• Conflict sensitive analysis and cultural
  sensitivity training.
• Apolitical or arms length agenda from donors
  overt political objectives where helpful
• Speed of reaction post conflict/disasters for
  example post Katrina CR provided information,
  communications, security of properties, location
  of relatives very quickly, similarly post
  Tsunami.
• Surge capacity of managed resources not officials
  plucked from desk jobs or retirees from home.
• Logistics and facilities management
• In the case of failed or post-conflict states,
  the already constituted international private
  sector resources can help provide capacity and
  skills which will help utilize the only too brief
  goodwill window before the citizens lose
  confidence.

8
Conclusions

• The UK based risk management and security sector
  is a large and flexible resource, respected
  abroad and available to work in a managed,
  accountable and cost effective way with
  governments and international agencies in post
  conflict situations.
• It also provides additional capacity to support
  The UKs policy objectives to assist in fragile
  states.
• It can help integrate the global companies and
  their activities with public programmes.
• It can help broaden the concept of private sector
  Corporate Social Responsibility from fragmented
  and often short term local programmes and assist
  in creating a sustainable ecosystem..
• It can bring experience from working with
  indigenous companies, often for many years.
• Globally it is still necessary to reach agreement
  on what is inherently governmental.
• However, even in areas agreed as governmental,
  such as the rule of law, expertise can still be
  sought from the private sector and utilized under
  strict oversight and audit.
• One impediment in the UK to greater usage of this
  wide sector is the attitude to and classification
  of companies as so called PMSCs. This is historic
  in nature. The self regulation epitomised by
  BAPSC and the increasing diversity and capacity
  of the industry indicates that a review would be
  useful. This would then allow the public sector
  to more easily utilize a major resource and
  enable a more trusting partnership environment.