The institute's purpose, as formulated in the statutes, is "to engage in research concerning the conditions for peaceful relations between nations, groups and individuals". The two largest project funders are the Research Council of Norway and the
Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Other funders include the
European Union, the
World Bank, and the
Norwegian Ministry of Defence. In 2009, PRIO initiated the founding of the US based Peace Research Endowment. In Oslo, PRIO hosted the Norwegian Initiative on Small Arms Transfers, which was shut down in 2017 due to lack of funding. This was a joint initiative of PRIO, the
Norwegian Red Cross and the
Norwegian Church Aid to help block the spread of
small arms to areas where they are likely to be used in warfare, armed violence or human rights abuses. The staff comprises a core group of 40-50 full-time researchers and support staff. In addition, there are researchers with a part-time affiliation with PRIO, visiting scholars, interns and students.
Research centres ;Centre for the Study of Civil War From 2003 to 2012, PRIO hosted the Centre for the Study of Civil War, one of the original 13 "Centres of Excellence" in Norway. The director for the full 10-year period was
Scott Gates. ;Cyprus Centre The institute maintains a centre in
Nicosia, Cyprus, known as the PRIO Cyprus Centre. Through its network, projects and dialogue forums, the PRIO Cyprus Centre aims to foster cooperation between
Greek and
Turkish Cypriots, and strengthen regional cooperation in the
Eastern Mediterranean at large. ;Centre on Gender, Peace and Security In 2015, PRIO established their Centre on Gender, Peace and Security, which is engaged in research in
gender and conflict studies. In particular, the centre studies issues like
sexual violence in conflict situations, women's representation in mediation and post-conflict settlements, and
gender security. ==Journals==