BROT Completes Training for CoP Liberia Team

Bread for the World – BROT has concluded a meeting for members of the Civil Peace Service (CPS), Community of Practice (CoP) team in Liberia. The CoP is a pool of local trainers within the CPS that has been built-up over the past five years.

The meeting ran from May 20-23, 2023 in Monrovia, facilitated by the two members of Bread for the World’s Support Team, Dr. Rolf Grafe and Juliane Westphal. It provided knowledge and a recap of skills to members of the CoP Liberia team, built their capacities further, provided room for exchange of experience, networking and team building, and gave participants feedback on the presentations and facilitation conducted by them during the meeting.

CoP members are trainers, co-trainers or facilitators for Do No Harm, Reflecting on Peace Practice (RPP), Mediation and Open Space. Together, the group looked at the Do No Harm Framework, challenges, context analysis, strategic planning of peace projects, Mediation, active listening, and conflict-sensitive programming again.

Another goal of the meeting was to market the CoP. Presentations were prepared for an event with other NGOs and NGOs that could be interested in trainings and facilitation offered by the CoP. Each member of the CoP created a trainer’s profile to be presented on the CPS Website (https://peaceworkafrica.net).

Achievements

Bread for the World through its Support Team conducted introductory trainings to staff of Civil Peace Service partner organizations, held practical exercises on the application of new tools; and also through training, helped partner organizations integrate new approaches into project planning.

The Support Team has completed additional training for some staff, the members of the CoP, enabling them to conduct training on or facilitate processes with Do No Harm, Open Space, and Mediation for CPS partner organizations, and other organizations and institutions outside of the Network.

Madam Decontee Eva George, CPS, Liberia Network Coordinator,, thanked Bread for the World for its support to the CoP.  “I am joyful for this final session for the Community of Practice.”

“The Support Team has handed over COP to the Network.  The closer we work together, the better we build bonds,” she noted. “We have received the tools and different approaches, and now it is time to make better use of them,” she told the CoP team.

Vonyee N. Kolison, Acting National General Secretary of the Liberia YMCA, speaking at the opening of the meeting, she was pleased to have the Support Team of Bread for the World back in Liberia to finalize capacity building for members of the Community of Practice. She challenged the CoP to look at sustainability. “The training you can offer is an added value, which will impact many people and communities in Liberia.”

Dr. Rolf Grafe, during remarks at the end of the training, told the team, “You are taking over the responsibility of training, and now give importance to the training.”

“The challenge is that you have to do it yourself, you have to be alert. You now have the responsibility to train your colleagues. You have achieved a lot, and you will train and facilitate on your own, but we will be there to support you.” He told the CoP members.

Participants’ overview of the training

Samuel Darporlor, a lead trainer, said it is a privilege to be one of the trainers in the CPS as a member of the Community of Practice. The sessions were both challenging and encouraging, providing an opportunity to bring everything and everyone together.

Luna Kiazolu of the Liberia Council of Churches thanked Bread for the World for the support. She noted the meeting provided the opportunity to learn more about Mediation and Open Space, and to deepen her knowledge in the application of Do No Harm.