How do international development and security interact with one another? Two panels at the LIDS Symposium looked at various dimensions that define the problem. The first examined the interplay between business development largely in the private sector and security. The second was addressed directly to humanitarian actors, and how security considerations affect their work. The panels were book-ended by two keynote speakers, Edith Quintrell of MIGA and Paul Brinkley of North America Western Asia Holdings (and formerly Deputy Undersecretary of Defense), who discussed how investors think about security concerns, and how we can catalyze development through careful interventions in the private sector that may have secondary effects on security.
Paul Brinkley, in his closing remarks, summed up some of the themes underlying the discussion throughout the day. Economic stability is a necessary condition for development. But without confidence in the security of an economy, foreign investment will not enter on its own, and as a consequence, a strong middle-class is unlikely to emerge. All the foreign aid in the world won’t, on it’s own, create a business environment conducive to investment and middle-class development—therefore, the security question needs to be addressed head-on.
Mr. Brinkley proposed a number of ways for approaching these problems. Many focused on providing incentives to bring foreign direct investment into regions typically too insecure to attract much investment on their own. Once the private sector arrives with some skin in the game, he argued, it will figure out how to prosper—bringing the development country’s economy along with it. Regardless of the merits of his particular solutions, Mr. Brinkley has a point: unless security can be maintained, developing countries will continue to struggle to improve their broader economic situations. Figuring out the most productive ways to encourage that security should be a primary focus of the development community moving forward.