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Why look at PRTs?
The development of Provincial Reconstruction Teams or PRTs are an interesting and controversial topic for students of Disaster Relief and Humanitarian Assistance efforts.
PRTs are teams of 60 or more specialists drawn from military and civilian government agencies. They can include educators, engineers, public health experts, agricultural specialists, linguists, security personnel, and many others. Teams usually work with local authorities on specific reconstruction and development projects.
In Afghanistan and Iraq, PRTs operated by the US government and its allies aim to provide a stable and secure environment in which to accomplish effective governance and economic and social development. The PRT goal is capacity building so that Host Nations can stand on their own.
Apart from assessments of their record and effectiveness,controversial aspects of PRTs involve their role in providing humanitarian assistance and their relationships, if any, with non-governmental humanitarian organizations working in the same country. What is the PRT track record? Are PRTs or their successors the future of government-sponsored humanitarian action?
The readings and resources selected here offer a range of opinions regarding this effort and do not reflect any position held by the Summer Institute or its members.
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Readings
- Thomas Johnson, "Working It Out with the Military: The View From Kabul," Foreign Service Journal, June 2007. (.pdf)
- Robert Perito, Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Iraq, USIP Special Report 185, 2007. (.pdf)
- Robert Perito, The U.S. Experience with Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Afghanistan: Lessons Identified USIP Special Report 152, 2005. (.pdf)
- Michael McNerney, Stabilization and
Reconstruction in Afghanistan:
Are PRTs a Model
or a Muddle? Parameters, Winter 2005-06. (.doc)
- McHugh and Gostelow, Provincial Reconstruction Teams and Humanitarian-Military Relations in Afghanistan, Save the Children UK, 2004. (.pdf)
- Jessica Davis, Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Afghanistan: A Canadian Perspective, Canadian Defence Association Symposium 2005.
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