Community CPA Dissemination

Youth activists in the Nuba Mountains region spread knowledge of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) at the village level, including in Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) areas.

Description

The initiative ran from December 2005 to 2006, providing training for 30 youth who have trained with the organisation before and have participated in many of its activities. These youth are already really active in the area; this initiative lets them spread what they have learnt through the Nuba Mountains villages.

Aims / Objectives

Our aim is that the village community becomes a base for the peace process. This is because all soldiers live in village communities. If the villages do not understand what we are saying their soldiers could easily start fighting again. Actually in the Nuba Mountains to fight means that you are brave, so the challenge is how to persuade people that the CPA will satisfy them and that they do not need to start fighting again.

How it is Articulated

We trained 31 youth (male and female) and we discussed all 6 protocols of the CPA. We focused on the Nuba Mountains protocol so that the youth could disseminate the relevant part of the agreement in those villages. This was done through meetings if there was availability, or through talking with people directly if not. They gave every village two CPA books. They discussed the CPA with governmental offices, and also brought it to SPLM (Sudanese People's Liberation Movement) areas, explaining what it means and how the people there are going to benefit from it.

Achievements / Learning points

We are proud we managed to enter SPLM areas and that they accepted our trainers from other village communities. Village communities have many areas in which they need confidence and encouragement. What we know is academic knowledge but we need real knowledge - we have to listen to them and learn from them, and then help them. It not good to disseminate CPA as it is, because it is either in Arabic or English and Nuba do not speak or understand Arabic or English, so we need to disseminate it through the local language next time. Also the CPA is written in legal language which is difficult for uneducated people to understand, so from this initiative we learnt that we have to give the information indirectly e.g. through drama or games. We will implement this initiative next time using drama.

Geographical Area of Operation

Dilling and all surrounding villages (Lagawa, Gold , Babanosa, Elmoglad etc).

Funding Resources

Fellowship for African Relief (FAR), Canada.

Organisations Involved

• SCOPE; and
• Fellowship for African Relief (FAR)
.