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.
“The issue of strengthening partnerships for civilian capacities in the aftermath of conflicts is very critical. (…) Let me seize this opportunity once more to thank the UN, the Government of South Africa and ACCORD for respectively organizing, hosting and facilitating this important consultation. The outcome would inform how we can best enhance and coordinate civilian capacities in countries emerging from conflict, thus consolidating the gains achieved and opening broad projects for both peace and development in those countries.” Ambassador Ramtane Lamamra, Commissioner for Peace and Security of the African Union, on the occasion of the African Consultation on “Strenghtening Partnerships for Civilian Capacities in the Aftermath of Conflict”
ACCORD, through its work and partnerships with other institutions amongst key emerging countries from the global South, will continue to support and engage with this process. Already underway is a national study seeking to identify and map key civilian capacities in South Africa, which can be effectively institutionalised and utilised by the country for its interventions in post-conflict states.
The workshop was funded by the governments of Finland, Norway and Switzerland. ACCORD’s work on the civilian capacities project is conducted through its Training for Peace Programme and African Peacebuilding Coordination Programme, initiatives respectively funded by the Norwegian and Finnish ministries of Foreign Affairs.
