Peace Education in Uganda & Somalia (April, 2026)

The Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict’s (GPPAC) Peace Education Working Group (PEWG), in collaboration with colleagues in Uganda, the Center for Conflict Resolution (CECORE), and in Somalia, Save Somali Women and Children (SSWC), are working to develop and pilot primary level lessons in conflict resolution and peace, in alignment with national curricula.

Five (5) teachers from Uganda and five (5) from Somalia are funded to co-develop practical peace education resources in collaboration with, and mentored by members of the GPPAC Peace Education Working Group, including Gary Shaw, Ed.D. (Australia), Loreta Castro, Ed.D. (Philippines), Cheryl Woelk (S. Korea), Tatjana Popovic (Serbia), Margaret Sinclair, Ph.D. (England), and Jen Batton, Ph.D. (USA).

Proposed Outcomes:

·       Adapted local peace education lessons aligned with Ugandan and Somalian curricula.

·       Strengthened local capacity in peace education pedagogy and resource development.

·       Increased peer-to-peer mentorship and global collaboration.

·       Enhanced student engagement in values of nonviolence, tolerance, and dialogue.

This work builds on prior collaboration between Deakin University, Institute for Economics and Peace, Makerere University and CECORE (Uganda), which are efforts led in part, by Dr. Gary Shaw, the GPPAC PEWG Chair for 2026. 

Building on work for Peace / Conflict Education in Uganda and Somalia!

Peace and conflict management efforts, or related topics, are not new concepts in Uganda and Somalia.  Many have come before, setting the stage for educators to be willing to contribute and grow the work. 

In NISSEM Global Briefs, one can access an article by Dr. Jean Bernard, within which, she shares lessons learned from her work linking the concepts of conflict and disaster/ risk reduction (CDRM) into the national curriculum in Uganda. That project was supported by Education Above All (EAA), under the guidance of Dr. Margaret Sinclair (2026 GPPAC PEWG member). Click on chapter 32 to access it.

A related effort and resource from Uganda, is offered by Generation for Peace | CryPeace. Their facilitators’ manual and curriculum, “Are We Together?” focuses on the themes of peace and conflict for young people ages 13 and up. 

World Vision worked on peace education in Somalia and developed a set of wonderful videos for primary age children, many of which peace or conflict related lessons could be developed around, now available on YouTube in Somali, with English Subtitles.