Youth and Peace Education (YPE)

Civil Society Policy and Advocacy Program (CSPAP)

The Civil Society Policy and Advocacy Program strive to develop a West Africa Action Agenda for the Prevention of Violent Conflicts, create a civil society platform for advocacy for conflict prevention and good governance, and increase collaboration and networking with CSOs at continental level. The program will also serve as the focal point for the partnership between the European Centre for Conflict Prevention (ECCP) and WANEP under the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC). 

Objectives:

• Promote civic engagement through community-driven initiatives at the local and national levels

• Provide training opportunities on advocacy techniques that allow WANEP National Network Coordinators to engage in constructive dialogue with CSOs and decision makers at national and regional levels.

• Promote National Forums for Advocacy in Peace and Security at the local and national levels.

• Promote platform for formal and informal dialogue between policy makers to promote good governance and human security

• Building capacity of policy makers (District Executive, Local Government Chairmen, Mayors, Prefets, Governors, law makers, senior police officers, etc) and CSOs

WANEP through its thematic programs such as the Capacity Building Program, Women in Peace Building Program, Active Non-Violence Peace Education, and Early Warning and Early Response has built the capacity of civil society on conflict prevention and peacebuilding. This initiative has produced a pool of knowledge and skills for peacebuilding across West Africa. However, the knowledge acquired need to permeate the decision making structures. WANEP plans to strengthen the capacity of CSOs to articulate their views and also engage their policy makers in matters of great concern to peacebuilding. WANEP therefore intends to maximize the effective use of its expertise to mobilize CSOs, NGOs and CBOs (Community-Based Organizations) at national level working in various thematic areas such as human rights, gender, youth, chieftaincy, conflict prevention, small arms, election, good governance, media, and religion to form national forums for conflict prevention.  The efforts of the Civil Society Policy and Advocacy Program in the next year will be channelled to facilitate that multi-level collaboration.

Expected Outputs

• Innovative techniques of lobbying and advocacy;

• National Forums for Advocacy in Peace and Security at the local and national levels;

• Formal and informal dialogue between policy makers to promote good governance and human security;

• Increased capacity and responsiveness of policy makers.