The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a resource person at the Oslo Forum, which is co-hosted by the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue. The retreat was held from the 16th to the 18th of June 2009 in Oslo, Norway. The Oslo Forum invites senior mediators and peace process actors to reflect critically on current mediation practices and to explore innovative approaches to address the changing environment in which mediators are operating.

The founder and Executive director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a resource person at a conference entitled “Making the difference: Strengthening capacities to respond to crises and security threats” which was hosted by the European Union (EU) in Brussels on 03 and 04 June 2009. Every two years the EU brings together policy makers and practitioners in conflict prevention and crisis response from the international community to examine and learn from responses to crises and security threats. 

On South African human Rights Day, 21 March 2009, Vasu Gounden attended the launch of the book “More Footprints that shaped our world” by South African author and activist Phyllis Naidoo. Former South African First Lady, Mrs Zanele Mbeki, was the guest speaker at the event.

On 23 February 2009 the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a Panel Discussion Moderator at a panel discussion hosted by the United States (US) Consulate in Durban on the topic “Race thinking and thinking about Race”. The discussion was arranged as part of a series of activities planned by the Consulate to mark Black History Month, which is celebrated in the US each February.

On 15 January 2009 the Head of Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for the Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean Region, Catherine Gendre, along with ICRC’s Provincial Manager, Derick Naidoo, visited ACCORD House. The aim of the visit was to discuss the work of the ICRC in Southern Africa, the upcoming elections in South Africa and ACCORD’s work in general on the Continent.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, attended the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa that was held in Cape Town from 10-12 June 2009. WEF brings together the key individuals from all levels of society and offers important discussion, information sharing and networking opportunities. The theme for this year’s summit was “Implications of the Global Economic Crisis for Africa”.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was recently invited to participate in the 2009 African Mediators Retreat, which was held in Zanzibar from 24-26 March 2009. The retreat was co-hosted by the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD Centre) and the Mwalimu Nyerere foundation.

On 4 March 2009 ACCORD and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, with the participation of the African Union, hosted a seminar in Addis Ababa entitled “Mediating Peace in Africa: Securing Conflict Prevention”. The seminar, focusing on the role of mediation in Africa and in the developing African Peace and Security Architecture, brought together representatives from the African Union, African Union Member States, civil societyl, development partner governments, and interested parties

On 24 February 2009 the Hon. Commissioner Nancy Boxill, a Board member of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research’s (UNITAR) International Training Centre for Local Authorities in Atlanta (CIFAL Atlanta) visited ACCORD House. Commissioner Boxill is the County Commissioner and Chair of the UNITAR-CIFAL Atlanta Global Leadership Initiative on Gender Equality in Cities.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited by the Crisis Management Initiative (CMI) to travel with the former President of Finland, and 2008 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, H.E. President Marti Ahtisaari, to Liberia for the launch of the “Governance out of the box” programme on 27-28 November 2008, in Monrovia. Discussions were also held on a working partnership between ACCORD and CMI on the above programme.