ZOA-Liberia Strengthens Civic Engagement for Peaceful Co-Existence in Bong, Sinoe and Grand Kru in Rural Liberia
Gbarnga — The project officer of ZOA in Bong County, Moses Bailey, has said the organization’s ‘Contributing to Reconciliation through Enhanced Co-existence, Resilience and Civic Engagement and Responsibility project in Bong, Grand Kru and Sinoe Counties, has made significant impacts in the three counties, maintaining peaceful co-existence among residents as part of government’s national development agenda, the Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD).
The three-year project, which is co-financed by the European Union, began in 2020 and ends in December of 2022, is aimed at enhancing co-existence and civic engagement in Grand Kru, Bong and Sinoe counties.
Bailey said there are basically two outcomes of the project which include: Outcome 1: Improved mental health, psychological well-being and social relations between Liberians in Grand Kru, Sinoe and Bong Counties, Outcome 2: Enhanced constructive civic participation and reduced political tribalism in rural areas in Grand Kru, Sinoe and Bong Counties.
He added the project has several activities, including the Community Based Sociotherapy, a researched and accepted methodology that helps citizens to develop skills to deal with traumatic stress, to foster forgiveness and empathy, to resolve conflict and to build consecutive relationships within families.
Bailey also said the organization has trained and deployed thirty (30) CBS facilitators in the three counties, who are rolling out the programs in the project communities. As of January 2022, about 1,169 (680 females, 489 males ) had completed the methodology of the CBS in the three counties, according to Bailey.
He said these people who have completed the program are at the moment leading peace and reconciliation drives in their communities.
“I am a former fighter who took part in the Liberian Civil War. I was very bad in my community and everyone had problem with me. But the CBS has helped to change me. Today, I am helping to solve disputes in my community. I have become one of the community leaders,” Sundayboy Korlorwhuan. Korlorwhuan completed fifteen weeks learning the CBS Methodology in Foequelleh and recently shared his experience with FrontPage Africa.
Also, according to Bailey, another activity of the project is the Civic Engagement Dialogues, where dialogues are held periodically with different stakeholders in the three different counties, discussing issues affecting the local communities, including drug addiction, security, education, health, etc.
Under the ‘Talking Bus’ component of the project which is implemented by Angie Brooks International Centre, according to Bailey, relates to civic engagements and allows community residents to come to the bus and ask questions relating to governance, rule of law, gender issues, and others.
“Someone wants to know the legal pathway of the criminal justice system for example, gender issues and other sensitive issues, he or she will go to the bus and ask the relevant questions and our experts will respond,” Bailey said.
The project also has a component that focuses on building the capacities of the local partner civil society organizations in the three counties.
“ZOA is working with 20 local civic organizations in the three counties, and is helping to build civil society actors’ capacity in different thematic areas, while at the same time fostering networking and collaboration among these CSOs in the three counties,” Bailey said.
Bailey said ZOA and Angie Brooks International Centre are nurturing promising young people to become better leaders in their communities through the project’s mentorship component.
Angie Brooks International Center identified young people who are already engaged with leadership, community mobilization, and voluntarism.
“These young people are trained and assigned to experienced mentors in the counties who are helping to prepare them through their different career paths,” Bailey noted.
By FrontPageAfrica.
