The g7+ group of countries was formed with the objective of creating a mechanism to monitor, report and draw attention to the unique challenges faced by fragile states. The g7+ was created to work in concert with international actors, the private sector, civil society, the media, governments and the people across borders and regions to reform and reinvent a new paradigm for international engagement in peacebuilding and statebuilding.

ACCORD Pedacekeeping and Peacebuilding Advisor, Cedric de Coning, her recently published an article in Stability: International Journal of Security & Development, entitled "Understanding Peacebuilding as Essentially Local".

Civil society delegates attending the ACCORD-hosted GPPAC Southern Africa Network Meeting, held in Midrand, South Africa on 30 and 31 August 2012, concluded the meeting by agreeing on two conflict prevention priority areas to be included in the Network's annual plan for implementation during 2012/2013.

A two-day Regional Consultation on "Strengthening Partnerships for Civilian Capacities in the Aftermath of Conflict" was recently facilitated by ACCORD at the OR Tambo Building, South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation, in Pretoria on 19-20 July. Hosted by the government of South Africa, in collaboration with the African Union and United Nations, the consultation was a resounding success. It brought together a diverse range of relevant actors aiming at enhancing the use and deployment of civilians in post-conflict settings, through promoting ideas of local ownership and strengthened partnerships by local, regional and international responses which feature greater expertise and nimbleness.

On 19 and 20 August 2011, the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) Southern Africa Regional Steering Committee Workshop met in Durban, South Africa, to discuss developments in the Southern African countries, emerging themes, and a strategic plan for the region.

South Africa will be hosting the fifth BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Summit at the Durban International Convention Centre (ICC) from the 26 to 27 March, 2013. Leading up to this event, there has been a series of forums that have preceded this conference, including the BRICS Academic Forum that took place in Durban from the 11-13 March, 2013. In the context of these events, the Peacebuilding Unit hosted a seminar on the 14-15 March 2013 at ACCORD House, Durban, South Africa.

ACCORD's Peacebuilding Unit has conducted a 4-day workshop on the implementation of the New Deal in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The New Deal is a new approach in which the international community engages with fragile states to enhance sustainable peacebuilding and statebuilding. The DRC pilots the implementation of the New Deal and the workshop's objectives were to enhance participants understanding of the process, its policies and implementations and also to enhance participants' skills sets on monitoring and evaluation in the implementation of the New Deal.

With the aim to strengthen partnerships and support the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)'s peacebuilding process, ACCORD's Peacebuilding Unit undertook a five-day consultation with key peacebuilding stakeholders. The DRC is one of the Unit's focus countries and the consultations did not only inform the Unit about the peacebuilding process in the DRC but also enhanced new partnerships and strengthened existing ones. The consultations were useful in shaping the Unit's current engagements with the DRC and confirmed a partnership with the DRC's Ministry of Planning for increased engagement of national and local actors in identifying strategies for a sustainable peacebuilding process. An activity is scheduled to take place in September 2012.

ACCORD's Peacebuilding Unit, through its African Peacebuilding Coordination Programme (APCP), has conducted a national training in Monrovia, Liberia, to strengthen local peacebuilding capacity as the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) winds down. The training focused on the role of justice and security in peacebuilding as a means of equipping government and civil society sectors with a full understanding of the Liberia Peacebuilding Programme (LPP), which is seen as crucial to ensuring sustainable peace in Liberia.

Under its African Peacebuilding Co-ordination Programme (APCP), ACCORD is holding a Joint Peacebuilding Training and Study Tour in Durban and Johannesburg between 22 August and 2 September 2011. The training event will bring together high-level peacebuilding stakeholders from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Liberia, Sudan and South Sudan to share their experiences and gain new insights into best practices and lessons learnt regarding the topic of "Elections, Governance and Conflict".