GPF Tanzania shares presentations on the Daraja la Amani Project.
Throughout October 2025, GPF Tanzania intensified its efforts to enhance local peace capacities and increase the participation of women and youth in community leadership. The month opened with a youth dialogue at Mtwara Technical Secondary School. More than fifty Peace Club members participated in discussions on the role of girls in leadership and the importance of fostering peaceful school environments. Students shared reflections on empathy, responsibility, and the need for collaboration between boys and girls in creating safe and respectful spaces. By the end of the session, many expressed renewed confidence in their ability to mediate conflicts, report harmful behaviors, and serve as peace ambassadors within their school community.
This focus on elevating youth voices continued throughout the month. GPF Tanzania collaborated with Kijana Initiatives Organization, Restless Development, and Apex Development Foundation to convene a national dialogue on integrity in the digital era. The event brought together youth from across Tanzania and from several countries beyond, virtually. Speakers explored the growing influence of digital platforms on public life and discussed how misinformation, cyberbullying, and unethical online behavior can fuel conflict and exacerbate existing tensions. The dialogue encouraged young people to practice honesty, critical thinking, and responsible communication. They also agreed on the importance of continued engagement and collective advocacy for ethical leadership.
Participants in the Daraja la Amani Project.
Alongside these engagements, GPF Tanzania carried out extensive monitoring visits to Peace Clubs, Early Warning Committees, and Community Journalists across the southern regions. The visits revealed encouraging progress. Many community members demonstrated an improved understanding of nonviolent conflict resolution and a strong sense of ownership over the peace structures established through the project. More than eighty percent of the respondents reported consistent participation in dialogues, awareness campaigns, and reporting activities. Community journalists continued to play an important role in identifying early warning signs and sharing accurate information with local leaders and authorities. Women and youth were increasingly visible in community decision-making, reflecting an important shift toward inclusive leadership.
The monitoring visits showed that behavior change is taking root within communities. Many respondents shared examples of reducing confrontations in favor of dialogue, supporting women in local leadership roles, and utilizing newly acquired digital and entrepreneurial skills to enhance their livelihoods. These outcomes affirmed that peacebuilding becomes stronger when it integrates social, economic, and educational components.
A follow-up monitoring exercise at Mnazi Mmoja Secondary School also reflected this steady transformation. Students who participated in a gender-based violence awareness session in May 2025 demonstrated a high level of knowledge retention. Most could clearly explain forms of violence, reporting mechanisms, and the impact of harmful behaviors on individuals and communities. Many showed improvements in communication, self-discipline, and respect for their peers. The monitoring confirmed that early interventions in schools can create lasting change and nurture a culture of dignity and safety.
These achievements set the tone for the Daraja la Amani learning session, which brought together partners, practitioners, and community leaders for two days of reflection and shared learning. Hosted with the support of Search for Common Ground Tanzania and the British High Commission, among other partners, the gathering provided a meaningful opportunity to examine the work unfolding across the southern regions of Tanzania under the Daraja la Amani Project. For GPF Tanzania, the learning session came at an important time, following a month of intense engagement with youth, schools, community journalists, and peace structures in Mtwara, Lindi, and Ruvuma.
On the first day, partners shared their experiences openly, identifying both successes and challenges that continue to affect communities. The space encouraged partners to reflect deeply on their work and explore how to enhance collaboration. The discussions reaffirmed the importance of local ownership, sustained mentorship for Peace Clubs, and continued investment in youth leadership.
The second day of the learning session brought together reflections, stories of change, and recommendations for strengthening the next phase of the project. GPF Tanzania presented its activities and findings, represented by Programs Director Penina Reveta and Southern Zone Manager Benson Daud. Their contributions highlighted how school dialogues, youth-led activities, and community monitoring have strengthened trust between citizens and local leaders, improved early reporting systems, and promoted peaceful coexistence across the regions.
The Daraja la Amani learning session closed with a renewed sense of unity among partners. There was a shared understanding that, although challenges remain, the foundation for lasting peace is being steadily strengthened. Across schools, villages, and youth networks, individuals are choosing dialogue, cooperation, and responsibility. These everyday actions form the living bridge that the project seeks to build, a bridge that carries communities toward a more peaceful and resilient Tanzania.
The Global Peace Foundation believes that peaceful societies grow when communities are grounded in shared values, ethical leadership, and collaborative action. The activities implemented by GPF Tanzania, along with the reflections shared during the learning session, embody this approach. Whether through school-based programs, community dialogues, or national-level youth engagements, the emphasis remains on empowering individuals to become agents of peace within their families, schools, and communities.
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