Training Peacebuilders in Yemen

ICRD - Yemen Project: 2nd Quarter Report 2015

By Rebecca Cataldi - Program Manager

Overview:

The outbreak of widespread military conflict in Yemen this spring has caused tremendous suffering throughout the country, exacerbating an already-unstable situation. Many international organizations working to aid the Yemeni people have scaled back or closed down their programs in light of security risks and freezes of funding from nervous donors.

However, in this time of extraordinary need, ICRD remains committed to supporting the Yemeni people—many of whom risk their lives every day to find peaceful ways to deal with conflict, create social and political change, and counter violent extremism. Our indigenous partner will not abandon the local communities its staff and members hail from, and it remains committed to working with us to serve the Yemeni people. Its recent decisions to include its President and Founder among the trainees in ICRD’s upcoming conflict resolution program and to cover the cost of travel for additional male escorts to ensure that its female staff can travel abroad for this training, are indicative of the importance DASO places on its work with ICRD, and the need for programs such as this.

Activities:

Thus, despite the current difficulties involved in operating in Yemen, ICRD is continuing the project with the following recent and current activities:

• ICRD conducted an extensive assessment of various countries to determine suitability as alternative locations to hold the first training for the Yemeni peacemakers, evaluating factors such as cost, security, ease of visa procurement, and ease of in-country travel. Currently, ICRD believes Jordan to be the best location for holding this training, and is continuing to consult with local partners to monitor developments. Initial logistical arrangements for holding the training there have been made; however, timing will depend on factors such as when the Yemeni airports reopen to allow the trainees to travel out of the country.

• ICRD is continuing to develop and refine the training curriculum in order to adapt it to new conflict realities on the ground in Yemen. The final training manual will not only be used to conduct this first training, but will also form the basis of a second training manual on conflict resolution and countering violent extremism (CVE) that will be given to our partner following the training. This manual will serve as a resource for them to integrate with their own methods as they prepare to train the thousands of local peacebuilders in their nationwide network.

• ICRD is currently overseeing the translation into Arabic of Back from the Brink, our educational film on countering violent extremism, in order for it to be incorporated into the Yemeni training and made available to our partner as a CVE tool to use in its subsequent activities in Yemen. (The English version of the film is viewable for free on our website at: http://icrd.org/countering-violent-extremism/).

Moving the training to Jordan entails additional costs, particularly travel and accommodations for the participants. 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 $13,587.

We must not abandon the Yemenis in their time of greatest need as so many others in the international community are perceived to have done. 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!

Rebecca Cataldi

Program Manager

International Center for Religion and Diplomacy

1003 K St NW, Suite 400

Washington DC, 20001

• ICRD - Yemen - 2nd Quarterly Report Jul2015 (DOCX)

Overview:

Despite the current instability in Yemen, ICRD’s project to enhance citizen participation in conflict resolution has been making progress. In collaboration with Yemeni consultants who are experts in more traditional conflict resolution practices and tribal engagement, ICRD has: (1) conducted an extensive needs assessment of the staff of a Yemeni partner organization who will be trained as practitioners and trainers of conflict resolution in the field; (2) begun to develop a curriculum for these trainings to include skills in conflict resolution, countering violent extremism (CVE), and conducting similar training in the communities; and (3) begun logistical preparations for the initial training, currently anticipated to take place in later in 2015.

Activities:

Needs Assessment:

Needs assessment surveys were administered to targeted stakeholders, including our local partner and indigenous Peace Committee leadership in the conflict-destabilized Abyan Province. These surveys were designed to assess current capacities, needs, and challenges in areas of conflict resolution, CVE, and conducting training programs. Analysis of the survey results suggests that emphasis should be put on: contemporary tools to integrate with traditional methods; frameworks for more consistent and thorough sharing of knowledge and experience within our partner organization and within the training space; practical methods for facilitation of conflict resolution programming; and collaborative problem-solving.

Curriculum Development:

Based on the above, a curriculum for the training program is under development and near completion. Currently, the curriculum is being designed to focus on: core principles of conflict resolution (and how they relate to traditional local practices); systematic conflict analysis; collaborative problem-solving; formal mediation methods; reconciliation; CVE concepts and methods; and facilitating effective trainings.  

Training Program Preparations:

The original intention was to conduct the training program in the Yemeni capital of Sana’a. However, in light of the current instability and violence, which has resulted in increased risk for both domestic and international participants, challenges for in-country travel, and uncertainty with respect to obtaining visas for foreigners to enter Yemen, ICRD is exploring options to hold this first training in another country. This will entail additional costs, and ICRD continues to seek the generous support of contributors through Global Giving. The organization and its beneficiaries are deeply grateful for the help of previous (and future) donors in making this program – and the empowerment of Yemeni citizens to resist violence – possible.