Introducing new data on UN Special Political Mission Mandated Tasks (UNSPMMT)

Abstract

Whereas United Nations Special Political Missions are established following UN Peacekeeping Operations or as substitute measures to enhance peace and security, studies have paid little attention to what United Nations Special Political Missions do and whether they are effective. The UN Special Political Mission Mandated Tasks Dataset provides new data on United Nations Special Political Mission-mandated tasks between 1993 and 2021. The dataset covers traditional and relatively new mandated tasks, such as those concerned with the enhancement of the rule of law and addressing climate change mitigation and counter-terrorism, respectively. To illustrate the usefulness of the data, this study investigates the effectiveness of the election-mandated task of United Nations Special Political Missions as an exit strategy of UN Peacekeeping Operations on democratisation. The results show that election-mandated tasks improve the quality of democracy. It helps unpack the mixed results of the UN’s effectiveness in enhancing democratisation in post-conflict countries, implying that its intervention matters through both peacekeeping and political mission mandates. This dataset helps researchers investigate the interactive effects of mandates and provides insights into the sequence of peacebuilding strategies.