New York, 15 January 2020 – The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) announced today the launch of the fourth edition of its Young Peacebuilders programme with the support of AEXCID (Agencia Extremeña de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo). After a competitive selection process, UNAOC selected 18 young women and men between the ages of 18 to 25 and coming from all across the Middle East and North Africa: Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, the State of Palestine, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen.
The Young Peacebuilders programme of UNAOC is a peace education initiative that aims to grow the global movement of young peacebuilders by strengthening their competencies to address negative stereotypes, prejudice, and polarization while bringing visibility to their actions and projects towards the promotion of diversity and intercultural and interfaith dialogue.
The programme consists of four phases that facilitate a progressive and experience-based learning process for participants: online preparatory modules, a face-to-face workshop, the implementation of a peace initiative, and a final symposium in Morocco during the ninth Global Forum of UNAOC in November 2020, during which Young Peacebuilders will present their work to relevant stakeholders.
The skills and practice that the young civil society leaders acquire through the Young Peacebuilders programme will help them and their organizations implement more successful projects while raising awareness among decision-makers that youth should be included in peacebuilding processes and policies, in line with the groundbreaking UN Security Council Resolutions 2250 and 2419 on Youth, Peace and Security, and the UN Secretary-General’s Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism.
Contact: Mr. Bram Van Haver, Project Management Specialist, UNAOC