UN Volunteers with UNESCO train young people as 'weavers of peace'
Central Africa has been affected by security vulnerability and fragility since the 1990s as a result of recurrent crises and conflicts. This is particularly true in the border regions between Gabon, Cameroon and Chad. The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) initiated a project called Les jeunes, Tisserands de la Paix (Young people, Weavers of Peace). This project is drawing on UN Volunteer talent to build a network of 1,800 young people, equipped with a conflict alert mechanism, who are serving as ambassadors of peace.
The project is implemented in partnership with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and 11 UN Volunteers are actively involved in its execution in the three countries.
Eight national UN Volunteers manage training, five of these in Cameroon and three in Chad. In Gabon, three national volunteers handle communications, information technology and monitoring and evaluation.