Peacebuilding Practices in Cross-Border Conflicts: The Ethiopia-Turkana Case Study

Conflict and peace have an impact on the current and future relationship of the community. Peace is the most important need and value of the pastoral community, and conflict is destructive and unimportant to them. To build peace, various actors have participated through different approaches. Inter-state diplomacy, non-state actors' engagement, international and intergovernmental organizations' participation and the role of community-based indigenous institutions contributed to the practices of peacebuilding. However, the objective of building lasting peace is still not achieved. Particularly, the federal government of Ethiopia gives less attention to the impact of cross-border conflicts in the study area, and the Kenyan government gives much attention to the issue of conflict and peacebuilding. The environmental change, resource scarcity like water and pasture land, drought, the availability of small arms, animal raiding, and killings for revenge and heroism, cultural factors triggered the conflicts and violence. The study, therefore, concluded that using multiple approaches to peacebuilding helps to mitigate conflict and can stop violence related to resource-based conflicts. Moreover, developing peace leadership could play a vital role in the realization of peace in the area.