This pilot project is part of the Institute’s international research on City Responsibility: The Role of Municipalities in Conflict Prevention, which aims to understand how municipal forms of governance can prevent and mitigate violent conflict.

The pilot began in March 2015 and has comprised a series of consultations with representatives of the municipality, the police, health experts, the private sector, educational institutions, civil society, young professionals/students and academia. Overall, more than 100 people have participated and contributed to the process sharing their experience and joining the different consultations that have been held between March 2015 and March 2016. In particular the consultations were aimed at:

  • understanding the changing nature and threat of violence;
  • identifying best practices, demands and challenges of designing and delivering preventive approaches;
  • setting the current priority areas for policymakers and practitioners;
  • identifying recommendations and actionable measures for strengthening policy and practice

To mark the end of the first phase of the project, The Hague Institute has produced a report which presents the main findings of the study. The report also outlines the recommendations and presents the concrete actionable measures that have been identified during the consultations, some of which will be implemented during the second phase of the project. In particular, the following three measures were prioritized:

  • To invest in education to promote active citizenship and the use of schools as platforms to encourage critical thinking and debate;
  • To strengthen dialogue among street level police and young people; and
  • To further involve businesses in community- based activities and initiatives.