The momentum and direction needed to tackle segregation and deprivation in Northern Ireland is at risk of being lost, a new report has warned.
Multiple reconciliation schemes involving significant spending have not brought major change as segregation in education and housing continue to hold back progress, think tank Pivotal said.
It warned Stormont funding cuts and soaring inflation would reduce support - hitting some of the most deprived and disadvantaged communities hardest.
Read more: No more funding until Stormont is restored, Northern Ireland secretary says
The report, Reconciliation and Deprivation: Twin Challenges for Northern Ireland, found that "progress on reconciliation is slow overall, with little or no progress in some aspects".
The paper is the first in a three-part series examining how the region could become a better place to live, particularly for young people.
It examines existing studies and policies, and features 15 interviews with voluntary and community workers, officials and academics.
Some argued there was a need to tackle deprivation before advancing reconciliation, with one community worker saying: "People can't have good relations if they do not have confidence in themselves."
Ann Watt, director of Pivotal, said: "Northern Ireland remains divided in some fundamental ways. Both education and housing remain highly segregated. It is hard to build bridges while living parallel lives."
She added: "Clearly there is a need to make positive changes within many communities before building cross-community bridges.
"Unfortunately, given the state of both the local economy and public finances, we risk losing the momentum needed to tackle deprivation and promote reconciliation."
The report cited figures including that 79% of people would prefer to live in a mixed neighbourhood but only 31% perceive their own area as mixed.
Just 7% of all pupils attend an integrated school, while only 14% of schools in Northern Ireland have at least 10% of pupils from a Protestant background and 10% from a Catholic background.
Ms Watt said that while the huge reduction in violence since the 1998 Good Friday Agreement is a major success, not everywhere has experienced the "dividends of peace".
She said areas which experienced the worst of the Troubles "tend to have the highest ongoing tensions".
These communities are "dealing with high poverty, low educational attainment, poor economic prospects and paramilitary influence – as well as the cost-of-living crisis and cuts to public services".
"That is not a breeding ground for hope. In order to take the next step in building community relations, these issues need to be addressed," she added.
"Otherwise we are asking people to settle for peace without prosperity. So far, the dividends of peace have reached some people in Northern Ireland, but not all."
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