Power sharing is a practice in conflict resolution where multiple groups distribute political, military, or economic power among themselves according to agreed rules. It can refer to any formal framework or informal pact that regulates the distribution of power between divided communities. Power-sharing systems have become increasingly commonplace in negotiating settlements for armed conflict since the end of the Cold War. There are two common theoretical approaches to power sharing: consociationalism and centripetalism.
Broadly, power-sharing agreements contain provisions relating to at least one of the following: Political, economic, military, or territorial control. Political power-sharing involves rules governing the distribution of political offices and the exercise of decision-making powers. Power may be shared by guaranteeing the inclusion of all significant parties simultaneously in the governing cabinet through rules on grand coalition formation. Alternatively, it may involve sharing power by guaranteeing sequential access to political office, like a rotating premiership.
Power-sharing theories make empirical and normative claims about the utility or desirability of power-sharing systems for conflict management in divided societies. Political power-sharing provides for power to be shared in political institutions among different groups and parties. It can include enforced executive coalitions, proportional legislatures, and more. Political power-sharing arrangements provide important security guarantees for state and opposition parties or rebel groups, by offering them a place in government. However, they are often criticized for rewarding violence, entrenching the divisions at the heart of the conflict by translating it into new political institutions, and focusing on an elite pact.
Power sharing can also refer to giving parents authority and influence over decisions that need to be made about the health and well-being of themselves and their children. Constraining power-sharing arrangements aim to safeguard human rights and emphasize the protection of vulnerable groups or individuals from abuses of power. Power-sharing deals enforced by coercion create a double-edged sword for the leader.
