Peace and Reconciliation Yemen Project #18593

Training Peacebuilders in Yemen

by International Center for Religion & Diplomacy

Project Report | Aug 16, 2016
A Second Successful Training!

By Rebecca Cataldi | Program Manager

ICRD - Yemen Project: 6th Quarter Report 2016

From July 30-August 1, the second training for Yemenis on conflict resolution and addressing violent extremism (AVE) was conducted in Sana’a. Yemenis who had been trained by ICRD in the first training in Amman trained 25 others—including religious leaders, other community leaders, and youth from Abyan, Aden, and Sana’a—in similar skills, incorporating what they had learned in the Amman training with indigenous methods.

Key training topics in the Sana’a workshop included fundamental principles of conflict resolution, mediation, conflict analysis and problem-solving, understanding causes and warning signs of violent extremism, and intervention strategies for addressing violent extremism. One of the trainers chose to show part of ICRD’s AVE film Back from the Brink to present a case study of Pakistan to the participants, which focuses on the role of education and critical thinking in either driving or mitigating violent extremism.

While the monitoring and evaluation survey results are still being analyzed, initial feedback from the training has been very positive. Participants highlighted conflict analysis, mediation, critical thinking about conflict, and understanding causes of and ways to address violent extremism as particularly areas of learning in the training. They also mentioned that they had been using some of the training concepts or procedures previously, “but in a confused manner”, and that what they had learned in the training would assist them in applying a more systematic approach to conflict resolution.

Overall, participants expressed that what they had learned in the training would be of great help to them in their work, and that “We were happy because we have exchanged knowledge and skills that can be used in our daily life.” They also indicated a desire to share the knowledge and skills they had acquired in the training with others, particularly concepts of conflict analysis, mediation, and addressing violent extremism. Additionally, participants asked for further trainings, highlighting a desire for advanced training in addressing violent extremism.

During the training, participants also began discussing ideas for conducting their community project to address an issue of conflict or violent extremism in Abyan. Further discussions are now underway to flesh out a project plan in more detail, which will be presented to ICRD for feedback and approval. The project is slated to be carried out in September and October.

We remain deeply grateful for your support, which has been critical to the success of this work. As we prepare for the next stages, your continued support will enable us to expand and deepen the reach of the program. Please continue to help us implement this critical work.

With gratitude for your support,

Rebecca Cataldi

ICRD Program Manager - Yemen

Permalink

May 17, 2016
Yemen - 5th Quarter Report

By Rebecca Cataldi | Program Manager - Yemen

ICRD - Yemen Project: 5th Quarter Report 2016
By Rebecca Cataldi - Program Manager - Yemen

ICRD - Yemen Project: 5th Quarter Report 2016

By Rebecca Cataldi - Program Manager

ICRD is pleased to report that the training program for Yemeni peacemakers on skills for resolving conflict and addressing violent extremism (AVE) was successfully completed from April 23-29, 2016 in Amman, Jordan. Eleven participants representing five indigenous Yemeni organizations were trained on topics that included core principles of conflict resolution, methods of conflict analysis, problem-solving, mediation, negotiation, reconciliation, addressing violent extremism (including understanding drivers and warning signs, context analysis, strategies and methods of addressing violent extremism, the role of identity and religion in addressing violent extremism, and critical thinking), and training skills.

During the course of the training, participants grappled with issues such as sectarian and political divisions in society, the intersection of religion and politics, the family, economics, education, and ways that all of these can affect conflict and violent extremism.

Participants reported that they found much useful in the training that they felt they could adapt and integrate—in context-appropriate and culturally sensitive ways—in training others in Yemen and in implementing field projects to address conflict and violent extremism. In particular, participants found especially useful the concept and practice of active listening, a new model of conflict analysis, the concept of critical thinking, and the AVE frameworks and training tools introduced—including ICRD’s AVE film Back from the Brink which profiles case studies from the United States, Pakistan, and Lebanon. (The English version can be viewed on our website athttp://icrd.org/countering-violent-extremism/ ; the Arabic version will also be made available there shortly.)

Many participants mentioned that they would now like to add AVE concepts to the trainings they conduct in Yemen. One organization, a pioneer and leader in the field of conflict resolution and conflict resolution training in Yemen, now plans to revise its current peace training manual to include AVE concepts. A participant from the governorate of Taiz who has conducted various peace trainings now plans to include critical thinking in his training for Yemeni lawyers. A participant from Abyan, a governorate where Al-Qaeda has gained a strong foothold during the ongoing war and has gained some support by implementing its own system of ‘justice’ for addressing conflicts, now wants to include AVE in his trainings and to create new community conflict resolution committees to address local conflicts, which would hopefully create an alternative to turning to militants for justice.

The following sampling reflects participant comments and reflections and is indicative of the impact of the training (see also attachedocument for photo):

“We have thought that the government should be responsible for addressing violent extremism, but now through this training we also see there is so much that we can do to address it through civil society.”

“I learned a lot of things, especially regarding violent extremism, how to address it, warning signs, and critical thinking.”

“This training was very informative. We have already been applying such concepts but hadn’t had them presented to us in such a strategic way.”

“This training was the best thing I ever had.”

“I’m so glad that this training will not stop here, that we will continue by going back to train others and working in the community.”

It was a long and often-bumpy road to reach this point, with enormous challenges from the war, airport closures, new visa restrictions, funding needs, and security issues. Inspired by the brave people of Yemen who never gave up in their courageous work for peace, we also refused to give up.

Your support has been critical to the success of this work, and we are deeply grateful. In the second and third stages of the project, participants will implement additional training in Yemen for a larger number of indigenous peacemakers, to be followed by a community project in Abyan to address an issue of conflict and/or violent extremism. As we prepare for these next stages, your continued support will enable us to expand and deepen the reach of the program. Please continue to help us implement this critical work.

Attachments:

Yemen - 5th Quater Report (DOCX)

1 Attachment

Permalink

Feb 2, 2016
ICRD - Yemen Project: 4th Quarter Report 2016

By Rebecca Cataldi | Program Manager

ICRD - Yemen Project: 4th Quarter Report 2016

By Rebecca Cataldi - Program Manager

The war in Yemen continues to cause great humanitarian destruction, particularly to the civilian population. Many programs in Yemen remain suspended or have closed down in light of the new risks and obstacles on the ground.

However, ICRD remains committed to supporting Yemenis and empowering them to more effectively resolve conflicts and build peace in their society. With the reopening of the Yemeni airports, we have begun to renew preparations to bring Yemeni trainees to Jordan for the first training on conflict resolution, countering violent extremism, and training skills, which is being planned for the spring.

To increase impact, we have also increased the number of local organizations whose capacity will be built in above areas and the communities which will be served by the project. We will now be training representatives of four different local organizations rather than one, which are based in the three southern governorates of Abyan, Aden, and Taiz, in addition to the capital Sana’a. It is intended that these initial trainees will then return to train others in their organizations in these same areas of conflict resolution and countering violent extremism, and that some members of these organizations will also be trained in the second-stage training along with local Peace Committee leaders in Abyan. Jointly training these members of various local civil society organizations together will provide additional opportunities for them to enhance their local networks and share lessons learned and best practices.

It is also planned that the additional three organizations trained will also carry out their own local projects to address an issue affecting conflict or violent extremism in their communities, expanding the impact to serve the needs of a larger number of communities across a wider geographic area.

ICRD is in the process of conducting a needs assessment of these additional organizations and will subsequently refine the training curriculum to better address their needs.

In addition to the added costs of moving the training to Jordan, the conflict in Yemen has led to skyrocketing costs of fuel and other resources. We continue to seek funding support to meet these new costs to facilitate our program activities. We are deeply grateful for the generous support to date from the Global Giving community, and hope you will consider making another donation to support moving the training to a safer location in Jordan. Your support will be critical to enable us to meet our remaining funding goal of $13,092.

We are determined not to abandon the Yemenis in their time of greatest need, despite the risks and challenges. Conflict resolution capacity is now needed in Yemen perhaps more than ever before. By supporting this program, you will be helping to empower these brave Yemenis to work against violence and hatred in their communities and to offer a better path to the future. Thank you for your support.

Attachments:

ICRD - Yemen Project: 4th Quarter Report 2016 (DOCX)

1 Attachment

Permalink

‹ 1 2 3 ›

About Project Reports

Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.

If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.