June 24, 2025 – For over 10 years, our peacebuilding mandate has been focused on training and empowering young women and men from underprivileged areas. Young people, whose minds remain open to new ideas and ways of thinking, are unique agents of positive change and transformation of communities. For them to be able to achieve their potential, we provide them with tailored training programs designed to give them the tools they need to address conflicts and tensions in their daily lives. This includes teaching them how to mediate conflict, control their emotions, and use dialogue to ensure peaceful resolutions to local disputes. This is an approach we have deployed around the world, with positive results.
Few places are in need of such interventions as much as South Sudan, a country which has one of the youngest populations in the world and which still struggles with the wounds of a civil war that started 12 years ago. Our latest cohort of trainees in South Sudan included 275 school students selected from 5 schools in Western Equatoria State (WES) to become drivers of peace of tomorrow. They successfully completed an intensive curriculum covering critical topics such as peace, conflict resolution, mediation, diversity, identity, human rights, negotiation, and communication. All of these are designed to raise a generation that rejects violence and embraces constructive dialogue, mutual respect, and social harmony.
For many students, this training marked a turning point in their personal development. Nakoyego Sarah, a pupil from Gracia Nursery & Primary School in Yambio, shared how the Conflict Resolution Education program helped her shift from seeing conflict as a show of strength to understanding the deeper value of peaceful coexistence. “Before participating in this training, I held the belief that fighting demonstrated strength,” she explained. “I engaged in conflicts with my classmates, but I have since come to understand that this behavior does not reflect the qualities of a responsible citizen. Our differences are a natural part of life, and it is possible for us to foster tolerance and coexistence.”
This transformation is at the heart of our approach to Conflict Resolution Education in schools. By embedding the principles of empathy and understanding early in life, the program helps students see conflict not as a trigger for violence, but as an opportunity for dialogue and growth.
The impact goes beyond personal change; the goal is also to inspire leadership. Baraka John, a student at Haddow Secondary School in Maridi, emerged from the training with a clear mission: “I would like to express my sincere gratitude to WPDI and its development partners for their support of this significant program, which trains participants to become future leaders who promote peace. It is imperative that we foster peace within ourselves to contribute to a more harmonious South Sudan. Having acquired essential skills and knowledge for conflict resolution, both in my educational institution and in my community, I feel a profound obligation to implement meaningful changes. My goal is to serve as a peace ambassador.”
Students like Baraka have understood that waiting to act will not achieve the positive transformation their communities require, so they are already taking initiative. Hipaingba Nancy, a pupil at SabeGbia Primary School in Yambio, described how she has begun to apply the skills she learned: “Over the past three months of training, I have acquired skills that enable me to effectively resolve conflicts within my community. When individuals are on the verge of confrontation, I intervene to de-escalate the situation and educate them on the significance of peaceful conflict resolution. I advocate for a round table approach, as it fosters constructive dialogue and mutual understanding.”
These testimonies highlight the real-world impact of the program. In teaching conflict resolution, WPDI is fostering a movement of young peacebuilders ready to lead by example, challenge cycles of violence, and contribute to lasting development in South Sudan.
As the 275 graduates complete their training and look ahead, they represent hope and resilience. They embody WPDI’s mission to build a culture of peace, one classroom, one community, one young leader at a time.
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