APL Conference

What is APC?

On September 21^st, 2023, PDRC convened its first annual peace conference, drawing on its more than three decades of experience in institutional state-building and peacebuilding. The aim of this conference was to promote discussions, exchange of ideas, and sharing of experiences; and to fortify and bolster locally driven methods for resolving conflicts and peace-making activities spearheaded by interested parties, practitioners, and leaders of the community. The summit also created networks among community heroes, peace-building advocates and provided a platform for people whose voices, hardships, and sacrifices have never been heard.

The centre invited academics, researchers, actors, supporters, and peacebuilding practitioners to submit papers, presentations, and films that highlighted their experiences and lessons learned in the field of peacebuilding in Somalia as part of the conference’s Call for Papers.

This highly esteemed event will take place annually, and the fact that peace-building agents impart their extensive knowledge of conflict reduction, conflict resolution, and peacebuilding methods is one of the justifications for this event. The people will also bridge their knowledge gap and foster networking among Somalis, especially those engaged in peacekeeping, and ultimately contribute to a long-term and robust resolution to the problem of peace-making in Somalia.

These unseen tales of self-sacrifices, time dedication, personal peril, and save-living flashbacks have been kept hidden for far too long. This is especially true of the very grassroots experience. Additionally, the PDRC conference will provide a platform for underrepresented voices and genuine dealmakers to be recognized and honoured for their long-term efforts and struggles to resolve antagonistic situations, clan rivalries, and border conflicts.

OUR AIM:

The three-day conference on peace and reconciliation aims to recognize and support institutional and individual ongoing efforts toward peacebuilding and initiatives for reconciliation among Somali communities. The following will be the precise goals:

1. To exchange insights and strategies for resolving conflicts amongst adversarial factions within a community.
2. To conduct scholarly analysis and offer empirically supported remedies for the main factors that precipitate disputes amongst Somali communities.
3. To learn about the unsung tales of heroes and communal peace partitioners and to honour their efforts.
4. To fortify and enhance the community peace structures, learned mechanisms, and routes for experience exchange among Somali peace-making heroes.