This paper was produced as part of the Practical Approaches to Localisation research project, funded by the Swedish Postcode Lottery Foundation. The project, based in Lebanon, Syria, Kenya and Rwanda, aims to ensure that local realities and voices on localisation are included in international debates on the topic.

The paper aims to identify issues and dynamics that can inform practical approaches to localisation in peacebuilding in Syria. It starts by defining localisation and identifying local actors in Syria, then it discusses the benefits of localisation, current successful practices, and examines the challenges and risks that localisation might encounter or create. The paper concludes with recommendations for successful localisation in Syria.

As discussed below, participants saw localisation as a process, rather than an end state, possibly because the end state was hard to envision in their context. This is represented in how localisation is addressed in this paper. Although the paper focuses specifically on localisation in peacebuilding, many of the findings are also relevant to development and humanitarian assistance. Given that efforts towards localisation are most advanced in the humanitarian sector, participants often drew examples from these initiatives.