BRAVE Programme
BRAVE Sheikhs, BRAVE Women ToT
The ToT is a process of acquiring knowledge, skills and attitude that are needed to fill the gap between what people want to do and what they are able to do. The main goal of the training is to give trainers the background knowledge, skills, and practical experience to provide communities with technical assistance. The Center for Sustainable Conflict Resolution (CSCR) through its BRAVE programme initiated Training of Trainers (ToT) for BRAVE sheikhs, imams, madrassa teachers, Ulamaas, Alims, Ustadhas, professionals and Women professionals who will in turn train vulnerable and affected in the community. This project is in line with one of the BRAVE aims which is to initiate a robust ideological push-back actions through Systematic Targeted Actions against Violent Extremism (STARVE). Through this, BRAVE expects to reclaim, take charge of, and control advantages of information asymmetries away from violent extremist groups. BRAVE’s thrust is two-pronged—Information Asymmetries claw-back and Ideological push-back. Activities to enable identify actors to take advantage of information asymmetries through a ToT is key in the Ideological push-back thrust.
Objectives of the TOTs
- Build capacity of sheikhs, imams, Ustadhas, madrassa teachers and professionals on narratives and counter-narratives.
- Build a pool of trainers from the community who will be ready to train other imams, madrassa teachers, Ustadhas ,youths and community opinion shapers
- To create a pool of trainers with a deep, wide and comprehensive grasp and understanding of preventing and countering violent extremism (CVE)
- Impart CVE pedagogical skills to the course participants
- Expose the course participants to Islamic Institutions and Muslim places of worship for familiarization with life experience with Mosque, Madrassa and Interactions with Muslim religious leaders
Strengthening Community’s Capacity against Radicalization and Violent Extremism Community Dialogues
The activity forums were executed by UNDP and BRAVE with the support of the Kenyan and Japanese governments. United Nations for Development Programme (UNDP) helped in funding the project on strengthening communities against radicalization and violent extremism which had a theme of community dialogues on peace and social cohesion. These forums were executed in ten (10) counties around Kenya in 2016. The counties were: Marsabit, Isiolo, Mandera, Wajir, Garissa, Lamu, Tana River, Kilifi, Mombasa and Kwale. Each county had one activity of mixture of youth, women and sheikhs except for Garissa and Mombasa counties where youth and women had separate activities. The objectives of the community forums included ;Prevent/protect Kenyans from being radicalized to violent extremism, Deter sympathetic thoughts of radicalization from gaining foothold from unsuspecting youth, Mobilize communities for dialogue and deliberations on appropriate solutions to radicalization leading to violent extremism, Reach out to others and deflect the negatives that bread intolerance among the communities and Erect community structures that will make it easy to tackle radicalization to violent extremism
Consultative Meetings
The aim of the Consultative retreats was to bring Muslim leaders, sheikhs and professionals together to deliberate on the most effective ways to deal with violent extremism associated with the faith of Islam, strategize on the best ways to combat violent extremism that is associated with Muslims, Create ownership and devise a workable action plan on the best way to implement BRAVE programmes based on community approach. The Consultative retreats took place in the following regions;
- Muslim Religious Leaders and Professionals held in Eldoret from 19th and 21st Dec 2015 reaching a total of 39 people
- Muslim Religious Leaders and Professionals held in Garissa from 16th to 18th October 2015 reaching a total of 34 people
- Muslim clerics and Professionals held in Nairobi on 1st and 2nd August 2015 reaching a total of 28 people.
- Muslim Religious Leaders and Professionals held in Mombasa on 5th and 6th September 2015
The objectives of the Consultative retreats were as follows;
- Appraisal of effectiveness of BRAVE as a Muslim intra-faith program in dealing with violent extremism.
- Dissociating Islam from violence in the country justified as ‘religious’ by violent extremists
- Identification of the major causes of violent extremism in Kenya and how Muslims in Kenya can intervene/address.
- Discouraging Muslims from taking part in violent extremism.
- Finding ways of assimilating the returnees without driving them to more violent activities.
- How women can effectively participate in Counter Violent Extremism.
