Government officials, UN leaders, development partners, civil society and experts met to discuss the progress in of the prevention of violent extremism in the Central Asian region and the way ahead

November 26, 2020

The rise of violent extremism and its spread across national borders has become a pressing issue for all Central Asian countries, threatening to reverse the development gains made over the past three decades since independence. Preventing Violent Extremism has been one of the main priorities of UNDP’s efforts to contribute to Sustainable Peace. At the core of the 2030 Agenda and SDG 16, Promoting Peace, Justice and Strong institutions, UNDP has developed a comprehensive strategic framework, Preventing Violent Extremism through Inclusive Development and the Promotion of Tolerance and Respect for Diversity.

In 2018, UNDP launched a project on Strengthening Community Resilience and Regional Cooperation for Prevention of Violent Extremism in Central Asia, generously funded by the Government of Japan. The project overall objective is to overcome socio-economic exclusion of at-risk-youth by by creating opportunities for productive and fulfilling life for young women and men and building resilience in communities against violent extremism.

For many years Japan has been providing assistance and support to countries around the world. We are very pleased that this project contributes to the stability and development of people here, in Central Asia. We will continue our work on further deepening of our cooperation with UNDP, Kazakhstan and other Central Asian countries to ensure the smooth implementation and success of the first phase of this project, thereby maintaining social stability in Central Asia,’’ stated Mr. Takashige Kobayashi, First Secretary of the Embassy of Japan in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Since the project’s inception in 2018, UNDP has directly supported over 6,000 young women and men in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan through holistic approach that included reskilling activities, mentorship support, vocational trainings, promoting youth entrepreneurship, and apprenticeship opportunities. UNDP has also supported the development of soft skills such as critical thinking, and psychosocial support and awareness raising activities.

As a culminating event within this important regional initiative on November 26 the High-Level Global Conference on Prevention of Violent Extremism in Central Asia convened senior policy and decision-makers together with practitioners to discuss various dimensions of addressing the violent extremism challenge and building resilience against it.

“Against the continued risks that violent extremism poses to the region, we also observe with appreciation the efforts made by governments in the region to develop policies and take action to enable development solutions to prevent violent extremism that are grounded in international human rights standards,” stated Ms. Agi Veres, UNDP ‎Deputy Regional Director, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Europe and the CIS in her welcoming remarks.

The participants included representatives of governments in the region, senior leadership across the UN family and partner international organizations, the development community, regional and global civil society. The sessions were structured to enable government representatives in the region to showcase their best practicies, foster the exchange of knowledge, best practice, inform of the emerging needs on PVE, and build networks across the PVE community in the region and globally.

“Utilizing PVE programming as a way to empower women and youth, promote their leadership of peacebuilding and development, and realise their potential to accelerate progress to achieve the Agenda 2030 is at the core of our approach at UNDP. We aim at involving young people as equal partners in developing and implementing policies and programmes to fulfil their potential as drivers of change,” added Ms. Veres.

Opportunities such as this High-Level Conference are very important for further developing a common vision centered around human rights and supporting effective coordination among various initiatives, and to facilitate exchange of experiences and knowledge generated through the work on complex violent extremism challenges.