Spotlight: Strengthening Zimbabwe’s capacity to plan for peacebuilding

ISS and UNDP Zimbabwe developed an innovative approach that gives ongoing support to institutions based on specific needs.

‘Conventional capacity building initiatives are not enough to assist peacebuilding practitioners to address the challenges they are faced with in planning for successful results’, says Annette Leijenaar, Head of the ISS POPB division. ‘There is a need to develop methods that will enable organisations to collaborate and mobilise resources across all levels to effect positive change in peacebuilding environments.’

In September, the ISS in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Zimbabwe piloted a new curriculum for peacebuilders. The curriculum – the African Peacebuilding Innovations for Change (APIC) – is an innovative initiative developed by ISS in collaboration with key African peacebuilding experts.

‘Collaborating with ISS in the design and piloting of the capacity-building programme provides us with an opportunity to think innovatively about how to address some of the gaps our partners have observed in the design, implementation and monitoring of peacebuilding interventions’, says William Tsuma, Dialogue Advisor from UNDP Zimbabwe.

The pilot course fits within a broader process, which includes initiatives that foster institutional approaches to peacebuilding. So far, APIC has included engagements with organisations for six months, online interaction and mentoring, a preparatory needs assessment, a one-day inception session in Harare in July, and a week-long workshop in Mutare, Zimbabwe from 12 – 16 September.

Course participants were from four Zimbabwe-based civil society and faith-based organisations working on peacebuilding as well as the UNDP Peacebuilding Programme. These partners were Search for Common Ground Zimbabwe, the Culture Fund Trust of Zimbabwe, the Centre for Conflict Management and Transformation, and the Ecumenical Church Leaders Forum.

APIC comes at a time when increased collaboration can help overcome peacebuilding challenges

‘Using a boot-camp approach, we aimed to move beyond the passive classroom style to one based on specific peacebuilding experiences and needs,’ says Gustavo de Carvalho, Senior Researcher at the ISS. ‘The APIC process challenges traditional training by integrating the needs of every participating organisation into the programme. This compels participants to apply the skills and knowledge acquired in their own working environment through peer sharing and mentoring techniques.’

APIC also combines individual capacity-building methods with direct engagement with senior managers and staff to ensure institutional buy-in. As a result, participating organisations are able to identify opportunities for better planning, including through resource mobilisation, coordination and policy engagement.

The APIC process provided an opportunity to build individual capacity by transferring skills and tools and creating space to foster and share experiences. These serve as building blocks for increased coordination, collaboration and effective peacebuilding planning. Each participating organisation was able to use the skills discussed during the process to develop and enhance existing projects that are expected to be rolled out later this year.

APIC comes at a time when increased collaboration can help overcome peacebuilding challenges. The initiative provided insight into how peacebuilding projects can be better planned and implemented, including the crucial function of monitoring and evaluation.

To sustain learning beyond training, the APIC process also encompasses exchanges scheduled between October and December and a stock-taking and pilot review exercise at a follow-up workshop in December this year.

In partnership with UNDP Zimbabwe, the ISS will continue supporting the APIC process in Zimbabwe.

For more information, contact:

Gustavo de Carvalho, ISS, +27 12 346 9500, [email protected]

Picture: ©Sibusiso  Nkosi/ISS

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