A number of studies, notably the World Bank’s Voices of the Poor report (a survey of poor people in 23 low and middle-income countries conducted over a period of years; Narayan et al., 2000), show that safety, security and justice are major concerns for citizens. Safety and security represent many things, including a stable income, consistent housing, clothing, and food supplies as part of the predictability of daily life, protection from crime, and psychological security.
There is a sense among poor people that insecurity and instability affect them more than the well off, whether through crime and violence, conflict, or through unresponsive, corrupt and abusive security actors such as the police. Poor people live in insecure areas, have the most insecure assets and rights, have fewer resources to protect themselves, and suffer the most from crime (Narayan et al., 2000; Ismail & Hendrickson, 2009). The recent A Million Voices report, on findings from the post-2015 development agenda consultation process, highlights security and justice as key elements missing from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (UNDG, 2013).
Women, men, girls and boys often have different safety, security and justice perceptions, experiences and needs that require targeted responses. For example, insecurity and injustice contribute to gender-based discrimination and social exclusion as a result of women’s inadequate property rights, unequal access to assets, and discriminatory social norms and power structures (Narayan et al., 2000; DFID, 2007).
Contributions to development outcomes
There is a growing body of evidence demonstrating that shortfalls in safety, security and justice contribute to both poverty and underdevelopment (Ismail and Hendrickson, 2009). Conversely, the presence of safety, security and justice can contribute to development outcomes including virtuous cycles of security and development, ‘with high levels of security leading to development and development further promoting security’ (Stewart, 2004, pp. 278-279). However, while evidence suggests that safety, security and justice are associated with development, establishing direct causality is complex (Cox, 2008; Roseveare, 2013).
Safety, security and justice are seen as moral rights and intrinsic to development
Safety, security and justice are seen as moral rights and intrinsic to development (OECD-DAC, 2007a; AusAID, 2012). Amartya Sen’s theory of ‘development as freedom’ includes protective security, political freedom, economic facilities, social opportunities, and transparency guarantees as elements of freedom, each of which contribute to individual and collective agency (Roseveare, 2013). Reviews of the impacts of access to justice or legal empowerment programmes make a strong case that insecurity and injustice are part of poverty, increasing the vulnerability of communities and reinforcing local power structures (Cox, 2008). Stewart (2004, p.266) notes that insecurity has an impact on human well-being through ‘entitlement failures’: conflict impacts upon individual or household command over resources, and extreme human suffering results when this falls below what is needed for subsistence.
The prevention of violent conflict and post-conflict reconstruction
The prevention of violent conflict and post-conflict reconstruction: Twenty-two of the 34 countries furthest from attaining the MDGs are in or emerging from conflict, which suggests that conflict and instability are barriers to development (DFID, 2010a). The World Development Report 2011 highlights that strengthening legitimate institutions and governance to provide security, justice, and jobs is crucial in breaking cycles of violence (WB, 2011). Econometric evidence on violence and development suggests that ‘the correlations between insecurity and underdevelopment are much stronger than correlations between peace and development’ (Denney, 2013, p. 3) and ‘goods’ perceived as entrenching peace, such as good governance, accountability and strong state-society relations, ‘are not linked to stronger development outcomes in the same way that the absence of violence is’ (p. 4).
Effectiveness and accountabilty:
Effectiveness and accountabilty: Accountability in safety, security and justice provision is related to protection from human rights abuses, the ability for citizens to seek redress and hold providers accountable, and to the responsiveness and accessibility of provision itself (OECD-DAC, 2007a). Security and justice institutions can be abused by elites protecting their vested interests and preventing transparent and accountable governance. Security and justice institutions that are democratically controlled, alongside an independent judiciary that can check the power of the legislature and executive, including security institutions, contributes to establishing the rule of law. The equitable provision of safety, security and justice to all citizens is important for legitimacy and effectiveness (DFID, 2007). It helps build the confidence needed to overcome societal mistrust in violence-affected countries. Creating trust and providing services in local communities contributes to ‘virtuous cycles’ of institutional transformation and national developmental progress (WB, 2011).