The Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) was signed in Doha, Qatar in July 2011 between the Government of Sudan and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), a coalition of smaller Darfuri rebel factions. It emerged from years of Qatari-led mediation following the limited success of the 2006 Darfur Peace Agreement (Abuja Agreement), which had been signed by only one major rebel faction.
The DDPD set out a comprehensive framework covering several pillars: power-sharing arrangements that created a Darfur Regional Authority (DRA) headed by a senior Darfuri figure; wealth-sharing provisions, including a Darfur Reconstruction and Development Fund; compensation and return arrangements for internally displaced persons and refugees; justice and reconciliation mechanisms; and a permanent ceasefire with associated security arrangements for disarmament, demobilization, and the integration of former combatants.
Crucially, the two largest rebel movements — factions of the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) led by Abdul Wahid al-Nur and Minni Minawi, and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) led at the time by Khalil Ibrahim — refused to sign, limiting the document's reach. JEM later signed a separate agreement aligned with the DDPD framework in 2013, but al-Nur's SLA faction remained outside the process.
Implementation was slow and uneven. The Darfur Regional Authority was established but criticized for weak authority and underfunding. The UN–AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), deployed since 2007, was tasked with supporting implementation until its mandate ended in December 2020. The DDPD was largely superseded by the Juba Peace Agreement signed in October 2020 between Sudan's transitional government and several armed groups, though core principles on compensation, land, and returns carried over. Renewed violence in Darfur following the April 2023 outbreak of war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has effectively collapsed the security framework the DDPD attempted to build.
Example
In July 2011, Sudan's government and the Liberation and Justice Movement signed the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur in Qatar, with Tijani Sese later appointed to lead the Darfur Regional Authority.
Frequently asked questions
The Government of Sudan and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), a coalition of smaller Darfuri rebel groups, signed it in July 2011. Major factions of the SLA and JEM did not sign at the time.
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