Rebuilding State Institutions in Collapsed States

The international community has embraced an unprecedented approach to collapsed states — those that have lost their capacity to perform even the most basic functions. While historically such states simply disappeared, divided up into smaller units or were conquered by a more powerful neighbour, collapsed states are now expected to be rebuilt within the same international borders thanks to the intervention of multilateral organizations and bilateral donors. Furthermore, there is now the expectation that these states will from the very beginning be rebuilt as democracies with strong institutions. This article examines the model of state reconstruction currently adopted by the international community and some examples of its implementation. It concludes that the approach cannot be applied to all countries, that institution–building is often undertaken prematurely, and that there is a discrepancy between the donors’ prescriptions and the resources they are willing to make available.