“Building Peace through Integrated and Collaborative Conflict Prevention and Crisis Management in West Africa”

The entire WANEP Family (made up of the 15 National Networks and the Regional Secretariat) embraced the New Year with a staff retreat in Sogakope - the Volta Region of Ghana from the 20^th to 23^rd January 2010. The retreat focused on its achievements and challenges in the past year with a critical retrospection at peace and human security issues across West Africa and Africa. This reflection is against the backdrop of declaration of 2010 as the year of Peace and Security by the Africa Union. Among the key issues discussed is the Network’s 5 year Strategic Plan commencing from 2010 – 2014.  

The Plan highlights the Network’s core focus as the expansion and consolidation of Network’s engagement with major stakeholders in peace and security sector towards effective conflict prevention especially the challenges of good governance and electioneering as most countries in the sub region are in the process of organising general elections within the next 3 years.

WANEP’s contribution to gender mainstreaming in peacebuilding was also a key component of discourse at the retreat especially presentations on the role of the Women Peace Makers Programme (WPP) towards the strengthening of the women in peacebuilding programme of the Network as well as engendering programs in the sub region. This constitutes a very critical factor that would shape WANEP’s work in the 2010-2014 Strategic Plan. 

The retreat also served as an opportunity for WANEP to reposition itself as a viable and strong institution to deal adequately with the challenges of peace and security in the West Africa and also to contribute to policy change at the continental level.

A member of the regional board, Mr. William Awinador was a guest at the second day of the retreat and he expressed his joy at the level of commitment of the Network to regional and national peacebuilding. He also encouraged all staff to sustain their effort for Peace and human Security interventions in the West Africa.

WANEP extends its appreciation and gratitude to the Government of Finland for its continuous support to collaborative peacebuilding efforts in West Africa especially in the funding of the retreat and crisis management workshop.