Non-State Actors and Challenges to Nation State Building: Case Study of Religious Militancy in KP-Swat (2008- 24)

Abstract

The issue of non-state actors in formations of nation-state and its implications is one of the most pressing questions in world politics having regard that non-state actors can undermine the authority of state in the world today especially in the third world countries. This thesis explores religious militancy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) & Swat, Pakistan during 2008-2024 exploring how such non- state actors hampered state-making processes & resulted in major challenges to governance, security, and social integration. Recent two decades have seen religious militant groups, most of whom are labeled with an Islamic similar extremism, use local aggrievement, ethnic cleavages, and socio-economic vulnerability to capture the space and weaken state authority1. They have not only caused insecurity in these places but also a regional and national insecurity threat. Through an investigation of the emergence and activities of some of these groups in KP-Swat, this study can examine how their militancy does so by threatening the legitimacy of state authority, displacing populations, eroding institutional strength, and changing the existing political landscape. Altogether, the thesis offers a multidimensional perspective on the relationship between non-state actors and the process of state building in post-conflict country and the broader strategic effects for Pakistan’s national security and political development throughout the twenty first century.