By Yiep Joseph
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in collaboration with Ministry of Peacebuilding launched two peace-building projects aimed at fostering peace among communities.
The projects are Community Violence Reduction Partnerships with the White Nile and Sobat River Communities to Advance Socioeconomic Cohesion and Peace and Preventing Violent Extremism in East Africa.
The peacebuilding projects, developed in conjunction with the Ministry of Peacebuilding, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), and the Peacebuilding Fund (PBF), seek to promote peace and social cohesion within communities.
During the launch, Minister of Peacebuilding Stephen Par Kuol addressed the participants, stating that the projects would benefit the communities.
“This project is very important and timely as it is community-centered, and as politicians, our role is to ensure that our communities are at peace and secure,” Par remarked.
“Juba is not South Sudan; South Sudan exists out there at the grassroots level, and that is why I encourage you to support this,” he added.
He stated that the government remains committed to exploring all avenues aimed at bringing an end to communal conflict.
“We can start with violence reduction; our goal is to eliminate community violence, and we must strive for more than just reduction,” he said.
He urged civil society and the government to collaborate with UNDP in ensuring the project’s successful implementation.
“Our role is to provide a structured environment in which our communities can engage in dialogue and find their own solutions to their problems,” he said.
“It is not about us; it is about the communities,” he added.
He called on the communities to embrace peace and unity.
UNDP Resident Representative Dr Mohamed Abchir, for his part, expressed that the projects would contribute to promoting reconciliation.
He noted that the projects focus on community-driven solutions to end conflict, with the intent to encourage growth and cohesion.
Abchir expressed appreciation for the Ministry of Peace specifically and the South Sudan government more broadly for their continued cooperation.