Peace and Human Security

Many parts of the world continue to experience various forms of violent conflicts including armed rebellions/armed conflicts, border conflicts, intercommunal/ethnic conflicts, breakdown of law and order and human rights violations, violent protests due to bad political governance, fundamentalism and violent extremism, many unsolved sectarian and ethnic tensions.

Conflicts in the world are due to a complex mix of political, economic, and social/cultural factors. These include disputes over territories, competition for resources, power struggles, ideological differences, and issues like poverty, inequality, and weak governance.

In these conflict contexts, women and girls bear the greatest brunt, experiencing sexual gender-based violence where sex is used as a weapon of war. The high level of involvement of youth in these conflicts, is mainly due to high unemployment levels, especially in Africa.

Conflicts have devastating impacts, including immense loss of human life, displacement of populations, and severe damage to infrastructure, health, education, and economies. They cause long-term social and psychological trauma, disrupt social and economic fabrics, and create environmental damage. At a broader level, conflicts lead to political instability, regional spillover effects, and can increase the risk of terrorism.

Our goals

Overall goal: To address the root causes of conflicts, prevent violence, contribute to peace processes and to promote human security and sustained peace and justice.

Specific goals:

Increased knowledge about the work, needs and resources of ACT members/forums in the field of peacebuilding/human security as a basis for joint action.
Strengthened capacities for engagement on peace and human security, including the active participation of women and youth.
Enhanced collaboration with World Council of Churches (WCC) and other ecumenical and inter-faith partners on peace and human security
National, Regional & international engagement and influence on peace and human security processes including UN Agencies.

Key achievements

01

Collaborated with ecumenical partners (AACC, WCC & FECCLAHA) on peace initiatives in DRC, Sudan & South Sudan, culminating in an ecumenical Peace Advocacy mission to the African Union and respective Embassies in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

02

Provided support to the reactivation of the Africa CoP on Peace and Human Security and organized a regional webinar to commemorate the International Day of Peace, providing an opportunity to reflect on Africa’s progress and challenges in peacebuilding in the context of the SDGs and Agenda 2063 of the African Union.

03

With the support of the P&HS Reference Group, we successfully organized, participated and presented P&HS Lecture in the ACT Advocacy Academy, with a focus on Peace Advocacy and the role of Church Leaders.

04

Actively participated and contributed in a Church Leaders Regional Ecumenical Forum for the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa hosted by FECCLAHA, with discussions focused on; “Leadership, Regional Integration and Creation”, further amplifying the role of ACT Alliance on the theme.

05

Knowledge enhanced on Humanitarian Development and Peace (HDP) Triple Nexus programming; through active participation and engagement in the (HDP) Triple Nexus Task Force consultative meetings and in a MENA workshop, discussing and enhancing the capacity of requesting members.

Protecting Social Action for Peace

ACT Alliance aims to create, develop, and strengthen a common understanding of joint actions on peace and human security, in accordance with the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit recommendations and the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals agenda to strengthen linkages between humanitarian, development, peacebuilding.

Thematic areas

ACT Alliance connects people and groups “on the ground” (community and religious groups, grassroots organisations, etc.) with policymakers and powerbrokers (governments, the UN, corporations, banks, etc.) to not only resolve conflicts, but also to build societies, institutions, policies, and relationships that are better able to sustain peace and justice.
ACT Alliance supports strengthening instruments for preventing violent conflicts, and joins and enables the participation of its members and churches in peacebuilding, conflict transformation and reconciliation initiatives (e.g., National Councils of Churches). This includes the Plan of Action for Religious Leaders and Actors to Prevent Incitement of Violence that Could Lead to Atrocity Crimes, where churches can offer a platform to discuss a way out of violence on the basis of shared values, while playing an active role in influencing decision makers.
ACT Alliance promotes the involvement of women and youth in peace processes and peace negotiations to ensure that the needs and priorities of both women and men are included in peace processes and peace negotiations.
ACT Alliance builds capacity through peace education; addressing peace and rights-based programming, and issues of human security, (e.g., access to justice and overcoming impunity).

ACT Alliance engages ecumenically and in close cooperation with churches and other faiths in advocacy for peace at national, regional and global
levels (e.g., UN Security Council), as well as with local communities, local governments, NGOs, regional and global networks and academic institutions.