Bolgatanga: Forty young men and women from various youth groups in the Bolgatanga Municipality and its environs have undergone a two-day capacity-building training to equip them with conflict resolution and peacebuilding skills to help prevent violent extremism in their communities.
According to Ghana News Agency, this training was part of phase two of the Prevention of Violent Extremism through Social Accountability (PoVETSA II) project implemented by the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) in partnership with the National Peace Council (NPC) and the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), with funding support from the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The PoVETSA II project, which began in October 2022, operates in five regions: Upper West, Upper East, North East, Northern, and Greater Accra. It seeks to improve civilian-security relations and strengthen community resilience against violent extremism. Ms Adelaide Yiriyelleh, Project Manager for CRS Ghana, speaking at the opening ceremony in Bolgatanga, said the workshop was designed to empower the youth to become peace ambassadors within their communities. 'We are bringing together 40 carefully selected youth to build their capacities in conflict resolution, mediation, dialogue, and early warning response systems,' she said.
Ms Yiriyelleh noted that CRS and its partners had developed a monitoring and evaluation system to track the progress of participants after the training. She urged the participants to replicate the training in their communities to achieve maximum impact. 'We will conduct quarterly monitoring and field visits to document success stories, identify challenges, and support participants to strengthen their interventions,' she explained. She also highlighted a previous session in March 2025 in Tamale, which trained 40 women in preventing violent extremism and promoting community dialogue.
Mr Ali Anankpieng, a Peacebuilding Expert and Trainer, emphasized the importance of youth engagement in preventing violent extremism. He stated that young people could be both 'agents of peace and potential perpetrators of violence.' He stressed that youth programmes should be demand-driven, based on the actual needs of young people. 'When the youth themselves define what they need and you provide it, they take ownership. That's when peacebuilding becomes meaningful,' he said.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Joseph Darison Wusi, Deputy Upper East Regional Police Commander, commended the initiative, noting that the project's goal aligned with the efforts of the Ghana Police Service to improve trust and collaboration between civilians and security agencies. He mentioned that the Police Service was open to partnerships with community groups, such as Neighbourhood Watch Committees, to help gather information and support law enforcement in preventing crime and insecurity.
Participants like Ms Darlington Anadem and Mr Nelson Apasnaba expressed gratitude for the training, emphasizing its importance in empowering the youth to prevent the infiltration of violent extremists into the country. They called for more such training sessions to empower more youth to lead peace efforts in their communities.