[Yei, South Sudan, TCT] The Yei based Initiative for Peace Communication Association-IPCA, organization is engaging the youth in South Sudan’s Central Equatoria State to fully participate in the peace building process.
Youth in Yei River County of the State are among those who participated in the first local peace forum organized by IPCA, tackling key topics including peace building, sustainability and conflict mitigation.
The first forum was held under the theme “understanding the roles of Youth in peace building”, with another one expected on October 3rd in Yei. Youth from secondary schools, churches, mosque, government offices, associations, unions, civil society and community based organizations turned up for the training.
“Our objective is to reawake to take a lead in the peace building process by bringing the youth together to discuss what concerns them. We think the peace concerns the youth”, Joseph Edward, the association’s executive director told TCT after the forum.
Edward said that the association has trained some youth in Juba and Tereka, and plans to expand it to other parts of South Sudan if resources are available, urging the youth to be pioneers of peace.
More than 730,000 South Sudan’s people have fled into neighboring countries and some 1.5 million people are internally displaced following the 2013 outbreak of fighting in Juba, according to UNCHR figures of July this year.
South Sudan is on the verge of achieving lasting peace despite loopholes perpetuated by additional conflicts that have violated the recently-signed peace agreement.
Calls and efforts for the warring parties to end the first war after independence in 2011 are high with some organizations already working hard on the ground to stimulate implementation of the agreement and foster reconciliation and healing at the community level.
“We think the youth are the people to make the peace in their communities. We are trying to engage this youth so that they can be able to adopt an idea of how they can participate in their communities. We don’t look on the peace that is discussed at the highest level”, Edward added.
Mundele Henry Joseph, was among the youth who benefited from the forum supported by United Nations Development Fund-UNDP through IPCA.
“I learned a lot of things, especially issues to do with conflict management and things about mediation. And I believe the skill that I have learned I’m going to put it into practice to see that really some of these conflicts that are happening at grass roots can be reduced”, Mundele said.
The chairperson of the youth in the municipal legislative council, Ale, commended IPCA for organizing the forum and called for more capacity building trainings to incorporate youth in rural areas, adding that ‘it is our task to spread this information to those who might have not got it’.
“I also want to appeal to IPCA to continue with these programs. We really encourage this as the government of the municipality, we need to see that this program continue ahead in order to make our youth alert of what is taking place in this country”, Ale told the participants during his closing remarks.
Yei River County youth association chairperson, Juma Hillary, demands IPCA to include more peace related topics such as conflict resolution and reconciliation.
Nadia Roseline, who heads the county women association, said organizing such forums will remove the bad attitude against the youth.
“It’s the youth to build the peace. Most of the people are saying youth are the corrupt people in the community. Now you are really taught, you can even change the society”, she said.
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