Trade, Aid and Security: an agenda for peace and development

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development argues that international security in the 21st century has shifted from state-on-state military conflict to 'human security', where threats include terrorism, climate change, and resource conflict. The author contends that current international trade and aid policies, often designed by wealthy nations, can systematically undermine peace and development in poor states by reinforcing power disparities and creating economic instability.

• The concept of security has evolved from a focus on military power and territorial control between nation states to 'human security', which prioritizes the individual and encompasses social, economic, and environmental dimensions. Modern threats include "terrorism, epidemic disease, organised crime, conflict over natural resources, climate change and environmental degradation".
• Since 1990, armed conflict has become more strongly linked to poverty. While low-income countries accounted for just over one-third of conflicts between 1946 and 1989, they constituted more than half of the countries and territories experiencing violent conflict between 1990 and 2003. Approximately 40 percent of recent conflicts have occurred in Africa.
• Security is described as an essential precondition for sustainable development, as conflict leads to "development in reverse" by destroying institutions, consuming resources, and causing environmental damage. This is particularly relevant for the Commonwealth, where 13 of 53 members are UN-categorised Least Developed Countries, and 17 are listed as 'critical' or 'in danger' in the 2006 Failed States Index.
• Current international trade rules are described as "fundamentally unfair" and biased toward rich countries. Trade policies can undermine stability in developing nations by limiting market access for agricultural exports through tariffs and subsidies, while simultaneously pushing for market liberalisation that reduces government revenues and increases competition over scarce resources.
• Foreign aid has sometimes exacerbated conflict by supporting repressive regimes or being diverted by armed groups. Examples include the propping up of the Mobutu regime in Zaire and the Marcos regime in the Philippines, as well as the looting of aid deliveries by rebel movements in Sudan.
• To ensure trade and aid policies support peace, the report proposes six objectives: designing conflict-sensitive trade policy, delivering conflict-sensitive development assistance, promoting good governance in fragile states, stemming the trade in conflict resources, ensuring responsible business operations in extractive industries, and improving the management of external revenues.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (n.d.). Trade, Aid and Security: an agenda for peace and development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tas_peace_dev.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. Trade, Aid and Security: an agenda for peace and development. n.d. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tas_peace_dev.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=Trade, Aid and Security: an agenda for peace and development |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tas_peace_dev.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopmentndtrade, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{Trade, Aid and Security: an agenda for peace and development}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/tas_peace_dev.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }