On 17–18 June 2022, the Youth Partnership for Peace and Development (YPPD) convened the first National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit, bringing together more than 500 youth leaders, government officials, civil society partners, security sector representatives, local authorities and other key stakeholders to advance a shared vision for more inclusive, peaceful and resilient communities across Sierra Leone.
The unprecedented interest in the Summit demonstrated the desire of young Sierra Leoneans to participate meaningfully in peacebuilding and conflict prevention. More than 1,000 applications were received from young people interested in participating, underscoring both the relevance of the initiative and the growing demand for platforms where young people can engage directly with decision-makers.
The two-day Summit was part of the Inclusive Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding Project, locally known as the Kolhat Barray Project, funded by the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (UNPBF) and implemented by YPPD and Cordaid.
The National Platform for Youth and their Decision-Makers
At the heart of the Summit was a simple but important principle: sustainable peace cannot be built without the meaningful participation of young people.
Sessions brought together young change-makers with security officials, district councils, government representatives and civil society leaders to examine the factors driving conflict within communities and explore practical responses.
Rather than treating young people simply as beneficiaries of peacebuilding interventions, the Summit provided space for them to contribute their experiences, ideas and solutions. Participants worked together to identify conflict drivers and co-design sustainable, community-owned approaches to conflict prevention and peacebuilding.
This approach reflected YPPD's longstanding belief that young women and men are not merely affected by conflict; when provided with the right opportunities, skills, platforms and partnerships, they are important leaders and agents of peace.
Bridging the Gaps Between Young People and Duty-Bearers
One of the defining features of the Summit was the opportunity for sustained interaction between young people and national duty-bearers.
The Minister of Youth Affairs, Hon. Mohamed Orman Bangura, and the Executive Secretary of the Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion (ICPNC) were among the relevant government officials, NGO leaders and other stakeholders who participated throughout the two-day event.
Their presence created opportunities for young people to engage directly with those responsible for policies and institutions affecting peace, security and youth development.
These exchanges helped move the conversation beyond simply discussing young people's challenges. They created a forum where young people could articulate their priorities, question existing approaches, propose solutions and participate in conversations about the future of their communities and country.
From Dialogue to People-Centered Solutions
The National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit was not conceived as an isolated event. It formed part of the broader Kolhat Barray Project's effort to strengthen youth participation in conflict prevention and peacebuilding.
The project recognized that the continued exclusion of young women and men from local dispute-resolution mechanisms and national conflict-prevention discussions could undermine both outcomes for young people and Sierra Leone's prospects for sustainable peace.
The Summit therefore provided an important national platform for connecting grassroots experiences with institutional decision-making. Through dialogue, shared learning and interaction among diverse stakeholders, participants examined local conflict dynamics while identifying pathways through which communities themselves—particularly young people—could become active partners in preventing conflict.
Strengthening Youth Leadership for Peace
For YPPD, the Summit represented another important milestone in its continuing work to place young people at the centre of peacebuilding and development in Sierra Leone.
YPPD believes that creating peaceful societies requires more than responding to conflicts after they occur. It requires investing in young people's leadership, creating credible pathways for civic participation, strengthening dialogue between citizens and institutions, and enabling communities to identify and address the underlying factors that can lead to conflict.
The National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit demonstrated what becomes possible when young people, government, civil society and other stakeholders share the same space—not simply to speak, but to listen, learn and develop solutions together.
Looking Ahead to a Second Edition
The June 2022 gathering marked the first National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit, but YPPD sees it as the beginning of a continuing platform rather than the end of a conversation.
Building on the experience and momentum generated by the inaugural Summit, YPPD anticipates a second edition that can deepen youth participation, strengthen partnerships and provide another national platform for young people and decision-makers to address emerging peace and security challenges.
The enthusiasm demonstrated through more than 1,000 applications for the first Summit provides a powerful reminder that young people are ready to participate.
The task ahead is to continue creating the spaces, opportunities and partnerships that enable them to do so.
Learn more about the National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit:
National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit website
Watch the documentary:
1st National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit in Sierra Leone – Documentary: https://youtu.be/cb3SzeXIWnU?si=DOmEWu_aXtvRWm_d
The National Youth Conflict Prevention Summit was convened by the Youth Partnership for Peace and Development (YPPD) as part of the UN Peacebuilding Fund-supported Inclusive Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding Project (Kolhat Barray Project), implemented by YPPD and Cordaid.