News reports are full of reports of violence in South Kordofan, but peace still exists in many places. Despite escalating violence, communities historically involved in the conflict are rejecting violence.

/publications/peace-in-the-midst-conflict-local-peacebuilding-in-south-kordofan

Even in the midst of the conflict as international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) bunker down, the tribes are still able to communicate with each other. Aided by the network of peace activists created and supported by local organizations, like the Collaborative for Peace in Sudan (CfPS), and funded in part by USIP, essential communication is maintained to prevent the violence from intensifying.  For the past two years, groups like CfPS, have been working at a local level with individual communities, encouraging them to think about their own interests and resist political manipulation. They have acted as mediators to re-build relationships degraded by decades of conflict and they have equipped individual leaders and communities with the skills and the structures to respond to conflict non-violently.

This is best seen in the western region of South Kordofan where the CfPS coordinator is based. In this area, the Dajou, Misseryah and Nuba tribes, located in the western mountains, have so far all agreed to reject the current violence. Until now there have been no violent events between them, despite the surrounding conflict.

This follows a formal agreement made by themselves after they convened a meeting with each other to discuss the outbreak of conflict at the governmental level. Supported by the Deputy Ameer of the Nuba, tribal leaders of Dagu and Misseriyah, and peace activists from all the communities, the agreement they made was published in the localmedia on June 14. Similar agreements have been made elsewhere in South Korodofan and in Unity state, south of the border.

Despite the coming independence of South Sudan, CfPS sees its north-south peacebuilding network as more important than ever. With USIP funding, it has actively worked with its coordinators in Unity and South Kordofan to maintain cross-border dialogue through this tumultuous period. And at a time when most outside observers would expect history to repeat itself, many of the communities historically caught up in the violence between the Sudan Armed Forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Army have resisted.

The United States has made an expensive, decade-long commitment to peace in Sudan for both humanitarian and national security reasons. Local interventions like those in South Kordofan contribute to this goal by helping to break a cycle of violence that has lasted decades.

Related Publications

For Sahel Stability, U.S. Needs Broader, Coordinated Policy

For Sahel Stability, U.S. Needs Broader, Coordinated Policy

Thursday, March 21, 2024

By: Kris Inman;  Matthew Reitman

As military coups and violent insurgencies have spread across Africa’s Sahel over the past decade, U.S. policy has professed to recognize and address their interconnections across the region, notably through the Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership. Yet this effort remains insufficient to meet the scale and complexity of the violence and the underlying failures of governance.

Type: Analysis

Violent Extremism

The Latest @ USIP: Grassroots Efforts to Address Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis

The Latest @ USIP: Grassroots Efforts to Address Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

By: Sara Pantuliano

More than half of Sudan’s population of 46 million is in need of humanitarian assistance -- and less than a quarter of them are actually receiving aid amid the country’s civil conflict. Sara Pantuliano, the chief executive for the Overseas Development Institute, discusses the current crisis in Sudan, why Sudan is important for global peace and how grassroots organizations in the country can help deliver aid to places that international organizations cannot reach.

Type: Blog

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

The Latest @ USIP: How to Address Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis Amid War

The Latest @ USIP: How to Address Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis Amid War

Wednesday, January 3, 2024

By: Patrick Youssef

Nearly nine months into Sudan’s civil conflict, the fighting has not only upended daily life across the country, but also disrupted Sudan’s already shaky economic and social services — leaving millions in need of dire humanitarian assistance. Patrick Youssef, regional director for Africa at the International Committee of the Red Cross, discusses how the conflict is affecting Sudan’s civilian population and why some sort of agreement between the warring sides is the only way to safely clear avenues for humanitarian intervention.

Type: Blog

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

Civil War Pushes Sudan to the Brink of Humanitarian Disaster

Civil War Pushes Sudan to the Brink of Humanitarian Disaster

Wednesday, November 22, 2023

By: Ashish Kumar Sen

Away from the headlines dominated by the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, a civil war between Sudan’s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is pushing the country to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. As an allegedly genocidal RSF gains the upper hand, a U.N. official has warned that Sudan is “facing a convergence of a worsening humanitarian calamity and a catastrophic human rights crisis.”

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & PreventionHuman Rights

View All Publications