Shaping Peace Together – International Peace Day 2020
The theme of this year’s International Peace Day was ‘Shaping Peace Together’, which is precisely what the United Network of Young Peacebuilders is all about. We’ve captured some of the incredible initiatives that UNOY Peacebuilders across the globe organised to commemorate this day, including an anniversary video from members in Asia and an Instagram quiz on YPS and UNOY.
UNOY Peacebuilders in the Middle East and Northern Africa and partners hosted an online discussion on “YPS in MENA Region: Opportunities, Challenges and Future”. The session was attended by 20 people and another 90 followed the live session. Ola Alaghbary from Shebra Youth Foundation in Yemen, Nidal Benali from Friends for Leadership in Morocco, and Ayoob Thanon from Y-Peer Iraq spoke at the event.
Our East and Southern Africa region hosted an internal dialogue, “How can youth in ESA shape peace together?” Felix Kiptoo from International Centre for Peace, Human Rights and Development in Kenya, and Kevin Sanvura from Peace Building Team in the DRC were speakers at the event, moderated by our regional coordinator, Raphael Nkurunziza.
Over in West and Central Africa, a panel moderated by our international governance representative, Rafiu Lawal, was organised to discuss, “Strengthening Young People’s Agency and Capacity for Sustainable Peace in Africa”. This fruitful discussion included 4 panelists from the network: Imrana from Nigeria, Achaleke from Cameroon, Elizabeth and Mohammed from Liberia, as well as Josiane from WANEP Ghana.
In addition, the
West Africa Centre for Peace Foundation joined the National Peace Council in Accra, Ghana to mark the day under the theme, ”Shaping Peace Together: The roles of the youth in Peacebuilding”. The summit gathered young people, traditional leaders, political leaders, and journalists from various media houses in Ghana, with 20 members in attendance. This year being an election year in Ghana, citizens were called on to promote the peace of the country, as there is life after the elections.
Sedarvp Ghana embarked on a media tour in the northern region to commemorate the day of peace. Diamond FM, Zaa Radio, and Neesim Fm hosted the campaign. Still on the celebrations, Sedarvp Ghana organised a durba at GBALAHI, during the programme, 200 masks were shared to participants. The community was sensitised regarding the need for peace, addressing the gathering, the public relations officer of Sedarvp-Ghana, Mrs. Abubakari M. Belawu took her time to educate them about the importance of peace.
Meanwhile, UNOY Peacebuilders in Asia (10 members from 7 countries) organised a full day of activities. The day started with an online conversation on Youth, Peace & Security hosted by Positive VIBES in the Philippines, with speakers from OPPAP, BYC, and also panelists from our partner organisations, the Generation Peace Youth Network and Qapwa. A total of 47,800 viewers were reached.
Next, Jagriti Child and Youth Concern Nepal, in collaboration with UNOY, conducted a workshop on the “Roles of Youth in Peace and Development”, where the participants shared the important role of youth in peacebuilding, along with the opportunities and challenges. The way forward was also discussed and presented about how youth can participate in decision-making, raise their voice, be accountable, and help in networking and coordination.
Organised by CCD Bangladesh, a radio show on the “Youth Voice for Shaping Peace Together” followed. The show brought together 5 different UNOY Peacebuilders: Saumya from India, Kiran from Pakistan, Remo from Sri Lanka, Haseena from Nepal, and Sumaya from Bangladesh. The extremely popular talk show enjoyed around 150,000 listeners via radio, and reached 4,000 via Facebook.
UNOY Peacebuilders also helped shape GPPAC’s Virtual Peace Table: “Redefining Our Future”, which gathered more than 50 participants. Leonardo from Colombia designed and moderated this vibrant, open conversation that offered space to youth leaders to share valuable insights from their experiences and expertise. We heard from Moe in Japan, Farida in Afghanistan, Nqobile in Zimbabwe, and Saumya in India. Finally, we hosted an Instagram quiz on YPS and UNOY, just for fun! Feel free to recycle the questions and see the results below:
