Project description
Successful peacekeeping operations through equipment analysis
Peacekeeping operations (POs) face a significant challenge: determining the factors that lead to their success. While larger deployments and diverse personnel are believed to enhance performance, practitioners emphasise the importance of adequate military equipment. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) programme, the ROMEO project addresses this gap by systematically documenting how POs are equipped across 87 missions in Sub-Saharan Africa from 1991 to 2023. The research aims to establish empirical knowledge on military peacekeeping equipment and its availability, suitability, and technical interoperability. By statistically modelling the relation between equipment deficiencies and the effectiveness of POs in reducing conflict-related violence, ROMEO seeks to offer insights into the critical role of equipment in successful peacekeeping.
Objective
When are peacekeeping operations (POs) successful? A leading answer from quantitative peacekeeping research is that mission size and personnel composition matter. The larger the deployment, the higher the number of uniformed troops, and the more culturally different the peacekeepers, the better peacekeeping performance. Practitioners, on the other hand, oftentimes highlight that adequate military equipment is crucial in this regard. Due to the lack of structured cross-sectional, time-varying data on how POs are equipped, peacekeeping scholars have, thus far, not been able to directly evaluate these appeals in a systematic manner. Consequently, it is unclear whether POs are indeed under-equipped, whether and to which extent this varies across cases and what role equipment deficiencies play for peacekeeping performance. ROMEO addresses this significant research gap in three ways. First, it systematically synthesizes and structures information on how POs are equipped (RO1), recording which country contributes material to which PO, supporting which operational function, with how many items of equipment, using which specific system for 87 UN and non-UN POs in Sub-Saharan Africa between 1991 and 2023 (WP1). Second, ROMEO establishes basic empirical knowledge on military peacekeeping equipment (RO2) by descriptively exploring the new equipment data from WP1 and other sources along four dimensions – availability, suitability, state-of-the-art, and technical interoperability – to compare equipment deficiency over time (a), across UN and non-UN POs (b), and within different actors over time (c). Third, it advances our understanding on the conditions under which peacekeeping works (RO3) as it uses the multidimensional information from WP2 to statistically model the relation between military equipment deficiencies and the ability of POs to limit conflict-related violence, especially against civilians (WP3).
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
751 05 Uppsala
Sweden
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