Introduction

Abstract

This introductory chapter starts with the puzzle that the book addresses, namely why peace in Ituri remained fragile despite manifold efforts by local and international peacebuilding actors. It revisits existing literature on the conflicts in the DRC and Ituri, on international peacebuilding success and failure and on local and international peacebuilding actors. Thereby, the chapter shows that a gap remains with regard to taking the interaction between local and international peacebuilding actors as an explanatory factor for peacebuilding effectiveness. The book seeks to fill this gap by arguing that this interaction influenced the way in which local and international programs contributed to peace in Ituri. After summarizing the main argument, the chapter introduces the book’s analytical and methodological frameworks as well as its contributions to scholarship and practice. It concludes with an outline of the subsequent chapters.