Empowering young people from Uganda and South Sudan in International Peace and Security in Education
Left to Right: Mr. Forest Whitaker, UNESCO Special Envoy for Peace & Reconciliation, Ms Rosa Malango, UN Resident Coordinator, Ms. Nada Al-Nashif, Assistant Director General for Social and Human Science, Dr. Victoria Kisaakye Kanobe, Programs Coordinator, UNESCO Kampala Project Office at the UNDP Office in Kampala - Uganda
A mission to strengthen capacities and partnerships on International Peace and Security in Education took place in Ggulu, Wakiso and Kiryandongo Districts from 7 to 11 February 2017. The UNESCO delegation was led by the UNESCO Assistant Director General for Social and Human Sciences, Ms. Nada Al-Nashif, Mr. Forest Whitaker, UNESCO Special Envoy for Peace & Reconciliation. The mission had as objective to conduct a capacity building workshop for young people from both Uganda and South Sudan on International Peace & Security in Education and to visit the Kiryandongo area where the Whitaker Peace & Development initiative is to launch a new programme intended for young women and men in refugee settlements managed by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). Several partners and community based organizations in Ggulu, Kiryandongo, Kampala and Wakiso Districts that have been involved in supporting young women and men from conflict- and violence-affected communities, were also visited.
The delegation was welcomed to the country on 7 February 2017 by Ms. Rosa Malango, UN Resident Coordinator, Ms. Rosie Agoi, Secretary General, National Commission for UNESCO, and Dr. Victoria Kisaakye Kanobe, Programs Coordinator, UNESCO Uganda Project Office. On behalf of the UN Country Team, Ms. Malango thanked the UNESCO delegation for their efforts made to ensure that young people are brought to the fore front regarding peace and conflict resolution, especially in the refugee camps. She informed the delegation that Uganda ranks number 1 in Africa in hosting the largest number of refugees (over 1 million) on the continent, 80% of whom are women, children and young people that urgently need skills for survival.
In his remarks at the press conference, Mr. Whitaker pledged his support to nurture the ideas of young people in Uganda and other parts of the world, in order to improve their lives by providing them with peace education tools, entrepreneurship skills, skills for peace and conflict resolution, as well as life skills. The UNESCO Assistant Director General for Social and Human Sciences pledged UNESCO's commitment to protect the cultural heritage and training of the youth for development in Uganda and the rest of the world.
The mission took place in the framework of a partnership between UNESCO and the Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative (WPDI), a Non-Governmental organization founded and managed by Mr. Forest Whitaker, to support young women and men from conflict- and violence-affected communities fully in line with the SDG framework.
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