Funded by: United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
Duration: 2018 - 2021
Overview
The USAID Yemen Communities Stronger Together (YCST) project, implemented from 2018 to 2021, played a crucial role in empowering local communities to take control of their destinies amidst the challenging backdrop of Yemen’s complex sociopolitical landscape. This project, led by Global Communities in partnership with Partners for Good, was dedicated to supporting grassroots initiatives that promoted peaceful conflict resolution, strengthened social cohesion, fostered community engagement, and enhanced local capacity.
Quick Facts
In Yemen, both youth and communities face an intricate web of challenges stemming from prolonged conflict and socioeconomic hardships. The ongoing conflict has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis, displacing countless families and profoundly affecting the lives of young people.
Yemen possesses a valuable resource for peace in the form of traditional leaders who, in cooperation with the government, can help prevent the further erosion of social cohesion and the escalation of violent conflicts. A significant proportion (90%) of disputes in Yemen is addressed and resolved through the Customary Law system.
The USAID YCST project operated across Abyan, Aden, Lahj, Taiz, and Hadramout districts, targeting areas deeply impacted by the conflict.
Partners for Good undertook the adaptation of Arabic-language Participatory Action for Community Enhancement (PACE) training modules to suit the Yemeni context. Nineteen YCST and local partner staff were trained to facilitate the PACE process within communities.
The primary objective was to foster community engagement through an inclusive approach, allowing communities to identify and execute service delivery and conflict mitigation projects collaboratively.
The project aimed to enhance the capacity of both formal and informal local leaders, organizations, and networks. These empowered individuals and entities would act as impartial mediators and peace advocates, addressing community and constituent needs effectively.
YCST pioneered stabilization activities to test and implement effective models that enabled credible local authorities and systems to peacefully manage conflicts and prevent the resurgence of violence.
The project prioritized continuous learning and contextual analysis across its interventions, promoting an action-oriented approach. This process supported adaptive management to achieve superior outcomes.
The primary objective was to foster community engagement through an inclusive approach, allowing communities to identify and execute service delivery and conflict mitigation projects collaboratively.
The project aimed to enhance the capacity of both formal and informal local leaders, organizations, and networks. These empowered individuals and entities would act as impartial mediators and peace advocates, addressing community and constituent needs effectively.
YCST pioneered stabilization activities to test and implement effective models that enabled credible local authorities and systems to peacefully manage conflicts and prevent the resurgence of violence.
The project prioritized continuous learning and contextual analysis across its interventions, promoting an action-oriented approach. This process supported adaptive management to achieve superior outcomes.
YCST adopted an inclusive and community-centric approach known as Participatory Action for Community Enhancement (PACE). This methodology empowered communities to identify and implement projects for service delivery and conflict mitigation. It also focused on strengthening the capacity of local leaders, both formal and informal, as well as organizations and networks, enabling them to act as impartial mediators and peacebuilders while addressing the diverse needs of their communities.
Under YCST’s purview, Partners for Good initiated a series of PACE training programs and additional courses. Partners for Good tailored the Arabic-language PACE training modules to suit the Yemeni context, equipping 19 YCST and local partner staff with the skills to facilitate the PACE process within communities. Partners for Good provided ongoing technical support, conducted refresher training sessions for the PACE team, and actively engaged in collaborative meetings to address challenges, track progress, and plan future actions.
Partners for Good further innovated by transforming the PACE methodology, encompassing its concepts, tools, and procedural guidelines, into an interactive digital training and educational platform. This digital resource is designed to promote sustainability, ensuring that its valuable content is readily accessible for remote use by YCST staff, partners, stakeholders, and community groups.
Partners
Approach
Leveraging our contextual knowledge and extensive experience across Yemen, the YCST team operates on the hypothesis that if we build local capacity to collaboratively identify and address conflict stressors and threats to social cohesion, and if we demonstrate tangible community-level results, then several outcomes will be achieved. The resilience of Yemeni communities and institutions will increase, local authorities participating in systems of accountability strengthened by YCST will be better prepared to lead their communities’ participation in national peace efforts, and the effectiveness of models that can be replicated across the country will be demonstrated, laying the foundation for a peaceful and effective transition process. The purpose of YCST is to support local-level initiatives that mitigate conflict, strengthen social cohesion, promote the peaceful resolution of differences, and, where feasible, capitalize on stabilization opportunities in Yemen.
