September 26, MOMBASA— The Global Peace Foundation (GPF) facilitated a training workshop organized by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Security Sector Program in Kenya. The three-day workshop under the theme, “Youth Engagement in Preventing Extreme and Organized Violence and Transnational Security Threats for Kenya” empowered Kenyan youth with the knowledge, tools, and resources to prevent acts of Extreme and Organized Violence & TSTs across the region.
The following excerpt from IGAD highlights the training program’s transformative efforts.
Hon. Fegessa (Director of the Peace and Security Division at IGAD) urged Kenya and all other member states to further engage and empower the youth considering this avenue as a unique and invaluable opportunity in preventing acts of terrorism and related transnational security challenges, all of which are persistently exposing the youth to greater risks. He noted that the youth constitutes more than half of the population of our Member States including Kenya.
He noted that these types of transnational security threats have continuously jeopardized the political, social, cultural and economic landscape of the IGAD region and beyond particularly because they target the youth as recruiters, recruits, actors and victims at various levels; yet the youth also have the potential and the energy to prevent these types of violence and could, if well engaged and empowered, play positive transformative roles. He also expressed his appreciation to the Government of Kenya for hosting the workshop, and sending its representatives
The three-day workshop covered key thematic areas such as; Transnational Security Threats in the IGAD regions; Role of the youth in countering and preventing acts of terrorism and other TSTs; The Process of Radicalization; policies around counterterrorism and related TSTs; Principles of Young Peoples Participation in Peace-Building; Kenya’s National Action Plan on TSTs – with participants engaging in what is indicated in their respective county action.
The training which was conducted in collaboration with the Global Peace Foundation-Kenya, an institution with the expertise and a track record in providing such training on Online Safety and Prevention of Violent Extremism in conjunction with partners such as Google.
The training brought together over 25 Kenyans, of which 15 were women, representing CBOs, NGOs, and CSOs in diverse areas of the country including North Eastern part of Kenya and Mombasa County which is, reportedly, vulnerable to radicalization and recruitment to extremist groups. Other representatives were from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
