Fafo-report 378

Philip Swanson

Fuelling Conflict

The Oil Industry and Armed Conflict

ISBN 82-7422-360-8
2002 48 p

Web edition (pdf 201K) * More publications on this subject

Economies of Conflict: Private Sector Activity in Armed Conflict

Programme for International Co-operation and Conflict Resolution

Angola, Burma, Colombia, Sudan…many governments depend upon oil to finance their war-fighting capacity. Oil installations can become magnets for rebel activity or extortion. What constitutes complicity in such situations? Fuelling Conflict describes the challenges to corporate social responsibility resulting from oil company investments in countries experiencing armed conflict. The report was commissioned by PICCR as part of the Economies of Conflict research project, which examines the links between certain private sector activity and armed conflict.

Financial support for Economies of Conflict has been provided by the Government of Norway.

Contents

Executive Summary

1 Oil, States and Armed Conflict
1.1 Governance
1.2 The Security Rationale
1.3 Legitimacy and Civil Conflict
1.4 Sustaining Armed Rebellion

2 Armed Conflict and the Company
2.1 Collective action problems
2.2 Moral and political support to the Regime
2.3 Abusive Security
2.4 Logistical assistance, procurement
2.5 Abuses by private and company security

3 Policy Options
3.1 Financial transparency
3.2 Transparency in security arrangements

4 Policy instruments
4.1 Leave it to the market
4.2 Facilitate voluntary codes of conduct
4.3 Positive Conditionality
4.4 Oil company co-operation with international organisations

About the Author
About Fafo and PICCR
Bibliography