Mediothek Afghanistan organized a series of local/district level workshops across ten provinces on November 2020. The district level workshops preceded by an advanced training of trainers (TOT) program for thirty facilitators and peace multipliers from across 10 provinces held in Kabul for three days at the beginning of this year. The two-day district level/local workshops are part of the project “Youth as Multipliers for Peace – Mobilization for and Participation in the Peace Process in Afghan Provinces”.
The local workshops were conducted by young trainees and peace activists who participated and successfully completed the training of trainer program in Kabul. The local/district level workshops across ten provinces (Badakhshan, Balkh, Bamyan, Ghor, Herat, Kandahar, Khost, Kunduz, Ningarhar and Kabul) brought together about six hundred young peace activists, leaders of youth group, social organizers, students and experts from district and local communities to discus and share views about a broad range of issues related to youth and their role in peace-building and political participation in Afghanistan.
The events provided an opportunity for young leaders of diverse social and educational backgrounds to engage in constructive and lively dialogues aimed at promoting sustainable and inclusive peace at all levels of society. The events also provided a unique change for youth, both men and women, to get involved in the peace process and encouraged them to continue participating in the country’s political processes in the future.
The project as whole aims to help youth raise their voices so that they have been taken into account and incorporated by political decision-makers especially in matters relating to peace and peace negotiation and the role of youth in such matters.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the workshops series in Kabul, Ms. Farah Mostafavi, Head of Cultural and Youth of Mediothek Afghanistan said that that programs and events is a continuation of the previous series of activities and programs by Mediothek and the training of trainers workshop which was held in Kabul before COVID-19 struck and halted the continuation of the project as planned.
“The trainers who conducted the local training workshops, two in each of the ten provinces’ were trained by an experienced trainer through the TOT program held in Kabul,” added Ms. Mostafavi “the young trainers are working in their communities to share their knowledge and what they learned from the advanced trainers in Kabul with local youth.”
According to Ms. Mostafavi the main aims of the training program is to familiarize young people with the role they can play in peace processes in their communities and beyond, it also aims to educate youth about their role is in the peace building and where they stand in the peace and reconciliation talks.
The project “Youth as Multipliers for Peace – Mobilization for and Participation in the Peace Process in Afghan Provinces” is aiming to promote a sustainable and inclusive peace at all levels of society by engaging youth and providing them with opportunity to meet and discuss key issues regarding peace and peace negotiations with main stakeholders at local and national levels. The project is funded by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany.
