The Training for Peace Program at ACCORD (TfP/ACCORD), was requested by the Peace Support Operations Division (PSOD) of the African Union (AU) in partnership with the British Peace Support Team (East Africa), to attend the Fourth Lessons Learned Conference to capture lessons from AMISOMs operations and understand the current threat and dynamics, as the basis for Pre-deployment Training within ongoing operations. Further, it provided the opportunity to understand areas of strength and weakness at the strategic, operational, and tactical levels. The conference provided a platform for parties involved in AMISOM to share their experiences and lessons learnt for the common good, in order that it may inform and enhance the continued development of AMISOM Pre-deployment Training, as well as its Tactics, Techniques and Procedures, and thus contribute to AMISOM's continued operational success.

Entitled Creating an enabling peacebuilding environment: How can external actors contribute to resilience?, the latest Policy & Practice Brief (PPB) published by the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD) focuses on how external peacebuilding actors can contribute to a country's self-sustainable resilience to tensions, external influences and shocks.

ACCORD's Peacebuilding Unit concluded its third African Peacebuilding Coordination Network (APCN) training in Juba, South Sudan. The training was a follow up to 20 peacebuilding projects that were developed by peacebuilding stakeholders during the first and second trainings that the Unit conducted in Liberia and Burundi. The third training in Juba focused on skills enhancements in the sustainability of projects developed by participants over a period of 5 months.

ACCORD, in partnership with the University of Uppsala's Department of Peace and Conflict Research and Indevelop, a Swedish consulting company working for sustainable social development, have commenced with the fourth edition of the International Training Programme (ITP) on Peace and Security in Africa (PASA).

As a change management process, this Programme looks at strengthening the Peace and Security Architecture in Africa by imparting conflict management and project management skills. Select participants will be lectured, trained, and mentored throughout a 5 phased programme which takes place over a space of 14 months. Phase II will take place in Sweden from 05-23 May 2014 and phase IV will take place in South Africa from 03-14 November 2014.Upon completion of the Programme, participants will be awarded a diploma issued by the University of Uppsala.

We are inviting suitable applicants to apply for this Programme. Please click on the link to access the writeable application form and brochure.

The deadline for applications is 15 February 2014.

Download the course brochure

Download the application form

Should you require any further information regarding the International Training Programme, its scope and purposes, then please do not hesitate to contact Marisha Ramdeen on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Dr Cedric de Coning on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

The Training for Peace in Africa Programme at ACCORD (TfP/ACCORD) was requested by the African Union (AU) to conduct an African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) Gender Mainstreaming Strategy Workshop to develop a mission – specific Gender Mainstreaming Strategy, for the mainstreaming of gender perspectives into its operations. The workshop provided a platform to advance creative joint modalities between the AU Peace Support Operations Division (PSOD) and AMISOM, on how to move forward in addressing the persisting reality of continued marginalisation of women from formal peace processes, increased insecurity and high levels of violence against women and girls.

Over the past years, a series of international, regional and national peacebuilding related policy processes have been initiated by the international peacebuilding community, and together these initiatives have generated a common space where several layers of actors working with peacebuilding frameworks on an international, national, regional and local scale interact. However, with this has developed an increased complexity within the peacebuilding field, especially in relation with other processes such as development, statebuilding, preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peacekeeping. ACCORD's African Peacebuilding Coordination Programme, funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, recently created a space which brought relevant peacebuilding actors together to discuss issues of complexity, coherence and coordination within the peacebuilding policy community by holding a two-day seminar entitled "Towards a More Coherent Peacebuilding Policy Community".

The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD), in partnership with the Durban University of Technology (DUT) and the International Centre of Nonviolence (ICON) recently launched the Durban Leadership Initiative (DLI) in response to strong demands for greater participation and leadership by young people. The launch was held on February 22nd, 2014 at the DUT's Steve Biko Campus in Durban, South Africa.

Within the context of heavy reliance on litigation by parties to disputes, the practicality of utilising Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods in resolving conflict in Africa was the focus of an Internal Staff Seminar held on 20 January 2014 at the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes' (ACCORD) Durban offices. The seminar formed part of the introductory stages of a new partnership between ACCORD and the Centre for African Peace and Conflict Resolution (CAPCR) at California State University, Sacramento in the United States of America.

Following a Training Needs Assessment in 2011, the Training for Peace in Africa Programme at ACCORD (TfP/ACCORD) has developed a training package for the Civil Affairs Division (CAD) in the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). The training package aims to enhance the implementation of Civil Affairs Officers' roles, functions and tasks, utilising the CCM tools and techniques. TfP/ACCORD conducted an evaluation of these trainings to assess the utility and the impact of the training package on the work of Civil Affairs.

The Training for Peace in Africa Programme at ACCORD (TfP/ACCORD) was requested by the African Union (AU) Peace Support Operations Division (PSOD) to conduct an African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) Protection of Civilians Strategy Implementation Plan Workshop for the development of a mission – specific Protection of Civilians Strategy for AMISOM's peace support operations. With a view of operationalising the AMISOM PoC strategy, the workshop provided an opportunity to develop an implementation plan that will support the mainstreaming of PoC activities within AMISOM operations.