This case study uses the bottom-up peacebuilding approach and the concept of everyday peace to assess the impact of interfaith peacebuilding activities in Burundi, which the Conseil Inter-Confessionnel du Burundi (CICB) implemented in Bujumbura Mairie, Bujumbura Rural, Muyinga, and Rumonge provinces. The study assesses the impact by exploring two themes: the transformation of group relations and conflict resolution at the communes and collines. From analyses of 22 CICB project documents and empirical evidence of 21 respondents, the study finds that CICB utilised a pathway for change that empowered grassroots faith leaders as the primary agents of change. CICB then deployed these agents to improve relations between ethnic and political ethnic groups by changing individual and group perceptions towards the ‘Other’ and resolving conflicts at the grassroots in the communes and collines.
The study also finds that CICB combined aspects of peacebuilding, including dialogue forums, local peace committees, and reconciliation meetings with religious values, texts, narratives, vocabulary, and tools such as prayers to promote everyday peace in the grassroots. Underlying that thinking is the premise that attaining everyday peace in different microlevel locations can end the cycles of violence at the grassroots and serve as building blocks of peace formation at the national level.
Kindly access the case study here:CASE STUDY SERIES NO. 4
Communities Richer in Diversity (CRID)
The four-year Communities Richer in Diversity project (CRID) aims at leveraging the influence of faith leaders and institutions to promote cultural diversity and respect for equal dignity in six African countries, namely, Burundi, Egypt, Kenya, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania. It was initiated by a consortium of faith-based organisations and networks, including Faith to Action Network (F2A), Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (CAPA), African Council of Religious Leaders-Religion for Peace (ACRL-RfP), and All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) with financial support from the European Union (EU). The project started in April 2018, and by 31 March 2021, six-country partners had reached at least 25,000 young men and women with interfaith and intercultural interventions. Such interventions enhanced the understanding, tolerance, and respect for cultural and religious diversity among the project participants and beneficiaries in the six countries. The activities can be categorised into four broad areas: edutainment and performance arts, peer education and capacity enhancement, community peacebuilding, and shaping of public discourse.
