Best Practice Examples
What was the name of the project?
Conflict Sensitivity – Concept to Impact
Where did it take place?
Sri Lanka, Sierra Leone, Kenya, UK
When did it take place?
September 2009 - December 2010 (ongoing)
Who were the partner organisations you worked with?
Sri Lanka;CARE International,
Save the Children,
World Vision,
SaferWorld,
International Alert,
ReDR International,
CAFOD,
Sierra Leone Kenya UK
All the above and
Action Aid Plan UK, SLaNGO
What was the project trying to do?
The global project 'The Practice of Conflict-Sensitivity – concept to impact' was initiated in April 2008 with the goal of achieving greater impact with development and humanitarian assistance through improved, and more widespread mainstreaming of, Conflict Sensitive Approaches (CSA).
The purpose of the project is to improve policies and practices that support CSA across a broad network of NGOs, local partners and donor agencies. In Sri Lanka the members of the CSA consortium started working together in September 2009 and started by acknowledging their work can have negative as well as positive impacts in the sectors in which they work (whether humanitarian, peace-building or development), if they are not attentive to the specificities of the environment, the propensity for renewed outbreaks of violence and, specifically, what the causes and triggers for such outbreaks might be.
Bearing this in mind, they intend to strengthen their individual and collective conflict sensitivity by mainstreaming conflict-sensitive approaches in their work and advocating for the same in that of others
What happened?
Over the past 16 months PCA and the Consortium has achieved much
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Developed a sound relationship amongst consortium members at organisation and personal level. At organisational level time was taken to negotiate an MOU and ToR thoroughly while representatives developed a teamwork approach through a two day workshop to agree a common understanding and definition of conflict sensitivity |
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PCA agreed to be on the Consortium Steering Group for the project and took a full active part in both leading the project and completing its activities. |
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A assessment process was devised so all member organisations could assess how conflict sensitive their projects, programmes and organisation were. |
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The last action led to each organisation developing a capacity building plan to increase how conflict sensitive the organisation was and its ability to start to influence partners, donors and other actors to be more conflict sensitive. This has been ongoing throughout the 16 months and will continue into 2011 and into 2012. |
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PCA offered our UNICEF supported Child Protection Network project as a case study to be |
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critiqued for its conflict sensitivity. This was well received and is now hheld on the International Conflict Sensitivity Consortium website. http://www.conflictsensitivity.org/ |
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PCA staff received training in Conflict Analysis which was augmented by PCA's representative on the Steering Group. |
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PCA led a partnership of Save the Children, World Vision, and PCA in conducting a major analysis of conflict in the Eastern Province. This included training 4 trainers then overseeing astaff researcher workshop to skill-up 30 staff (10 from each organisation) to interview individuals and conduct focus group discussions to collect the experience, understandings, and concerns of Tamil, Muslim, and Sinhala people in Village, community organisations, I/NGOs, and field level government officers, community level religious leaders, local politicians and leaders of armed groups. Over 750 people contributed. This was part of the task to complete a national conflict analysis. Different partners led in different geographical areas. |
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The Consortium Steering Group commissioned review of Donors in relation to conflict sensitivity. This document is being used in funding discussions with donors. |
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There was a cross learning event bringing all partners in the 4 countries together – this was held in Kenya. The Consortium sent 6 representatives including one from PCA. This was very successful and ensured cross country learning. |
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Finally, in October 2010 the Sri Lanka Consortium agreed on its pilot project – to learn from trying to increase the conflict sensitivity of an existing project. PCA's CAFOD funded Cohesion project in Matara was selected. |
What were the impacts
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PCA gained experience and confidence in working with INGO partners on equal terms. |
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PCA understands that to be a peace building organisation does not necessary ensure conflict sensitivity. PCA staff have developed clear understandings and additional skills to ensure work in conflict sensitive ways. The organisation has developed a CS policy, and M&E processes to assist in ensuring the organisation is conflict sensitive. |
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PCA now has skilled staff who can complete an analysis of conflict in given communities. Previously PCA would work on the most obvious and serious conflicts, transforming their energy into a positive force for change. Now we can also identify, monitor and manage other conflicts or tensions which we are not transforming so we do not accidentally exacerbate those conflicts or create new ones through our work. |
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PCA has the understandings to challenge donors to work with us to use these skills and understandings to improve proposals by increasing their conflict sensitivity. |
What was the name of the project
Where did it take place?
When did it take place?
Who were the partner organisations you worked with?
Quaker peace and Social Witness- London.
Peace and Community Action - Srilanka.
Ekta parishad and Gandhi Peace Foundation - India.
GUP- Bangladesh
IHRICON , Nepal.
SAP PK - Pakistan.
T for Peace - Afghanistan.
What was the project trying to do?
Peace Building
Peace Education, Nonviolence training and promoting active nonviolence are the three components of peace building. This, done in a integrated way, helps to strengthen and empower the community.
Non-Violence Training
SAPA organizes workshop and action based non-violence training programmes across the region for helping people to realize the power of nonviolence. These workshops are at three levels (1) Grassroots Level, (2) National Level and, (3) Regional Level.
The aim of training is to promote a culture of peace through nonviolent action and to provide a wide space for action-based training for learners and peace workers. SAPA provides training in Nonviolence for young women and men. It also seeks to create support systems so that they can actively engage with the community.
Peace education gives democratic space to the community and inculcates attitudes and values of peace. Active nonviolence involves engagement in the form of demonstrations, padyatra (foot marches) etc and sensitization and advocacy work through all forms of media.
Among the SAPA Trainings & Workshops organized were
"Training of Trainers" in Chitwan, Nepal (November 2006),
Sensitizing the Media in Gwalior, India (August 2007)
Peace Education in Colombo (May 2008)
Women's Training programme on peace and non-violence in Katni (M.P.), India (September 2008).
"Strengthening Democracy through Nonviolence" in Joura,India (December 2009).
SAPA plans to build the Peace builders network in South Asia. In the current phase it plans to engage with youth who would act as Community Facilitators at the grassroots and aims to build a strong network of 10,000 mainly young people by 2015.
Promoting exchange to expose young people to ground realities in South Asia.
Broadening the Alliance. SAPA has worked to broaden its base by developing linkages with other international and regional networks through mutually supportive actions. One example of this is the Campaign for Disarmament to Combat Poverty, which was launched in 2006 during India Social Forum in New Delhi.
It has been engaging with global alliances and organisational actors on common platforms such as the People's SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation), supporting and conducting sessions at the World Social Forum (WSF) and other regional networks such as SANSAD (South Asia Network for Social and Agricultural development),
SADED( South Asian Dialogue on Development and Ecology, CAFI (Control Arms Foundation of India), SANEL (South Asia Network on Environmental Law and Policy, SANGAT (South Asia Network of gender activists and trainers ,OWM(Ora World Mandala) and Charter for Human Responsibilities.
SAPA would like to move towards "Action Alliance" so that South Asia identity becomes a reality.
What happened?
The South Asia Peace Alliance (SAPA) redefined its mission in 2010.
Its vision is to advance the growth of real peace in the South Asian region. It aims to improve self understanding as well as relationships and the understanding between people and communities, thereby reducing the likelihood of violent behaviour and conflicts. In order to achieve this, SAPA works with people throughout the region regardless of nationality, ethnicity or religion.
SAPA came into existence to demystify and reinforce the value of nonviolence by addressing structural and other forms of violence that affect a large number of marginalized people across the South Asian region.
SAPA recognizes the rich potential of youth energy, women's power and the power of the community at large as a means of bringing about fundamental and necessary change. The SAPA mission gives an opportunity to empower the youth, and to instil them with self confidence so that they can transform society.
SAPA AIMS
To build a movement in South Asia that shares insights and experiences of the root causes of structural violence in the region and moves towards building a South Asian identity to resolve issues.
To act in cooperation with the region's marginalized people to nurture the seeds of active nonviolence that challenge the structures of violence.
To build the capacity of young women and men to facilitate nonviolent change in local communities and to deepen democracy at the grassroots.
To work with other nonviolent actors to contribute towards the development of a global nonviolence movement and develop a culture of peace.
HISTORY
The South Asia Peace Alliance (SAPA) was launched at a consultation hosted by IHRICON in Nepal, 4-6 April 2006. This came at the end of a three year process of consultation and joint action in the South Asia region. Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have been represented from the outset; Afghanistan has been involved since November 2005.
The seeds had been planted in Dhaka, Bangladesh in April 2003 with a six day workshop "Peace is the way - conflict transformation in South Asia" involving 23 South Asia participants representing 14 South Asian voluntary organizations and people's movements. People from the marginalized areas of North East India and the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh were included as were grassroots activists. The workshop was facilitated by Quaker Peace & Social Witness (QPSW), Britain.
This led to three further invitations that enabled a total of forty six South Asian people to experience exposure and training in ahimsa (non-violence) offered by Ekta Parishad and the Gandhi Peace Foundation in India. These experiences took place in Orissa (December 2004); Delhi and Madhya Pradesh (June 2005); Delhi, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh (November 2005).
What were the impacts
Each member organization has developed their own network for SAPA mission.
Each member organization has agreed to have SAPA mission part of the organization mandate.
More than 10 trainers have been trained by SAPA in Last five years from each countries and that has built their local capacity to deliver their peace programme at National Level.
SAPA has represented south Asia at international events.