Can the Afghan state intervene successfully in the conflict between nomads and settlers?

The worsening conflict between nomads and settlers in Afghanistan needs to be tackled, but does the Afghan state have the capacity and the status to intervene in the conflict and to have a positive impact? The capacity is very limited now, and the Afghan state is not even able to fully monitor the conflict. Even when the Afghan state attempts to manage the conflict, it implements poorly – this is the case for example of nomad settlement projects. There is also a question of whether state intervention in the conflict is always perceived as neutral or not. But are there alternatives to state intervention? And if there are no alternatives, what are the potential consequences of the conflict being left to fester? This policy note explores these issues, summarising a number of more detailed AREU papers already published on this topic, and provides some policy recommendations for future implementation.