Over the coming weeks, we will explore five aspects of peacebuilding work in South Sudan, linked to themes of human security that were explored during the Caux Forum for Human Security, between 2008 and 2012. This vision of Mohamed Sahnoun still resonates with both the national and sub-national dynamics in South Sudan, and invites reflection from external actors on how we engage. The first in the series looks at Just Governance.

With all of the belly laughter and back slapping it’s easy to forget that everyone in the room has been affected by the ongoing tribal war, on different sides. The eleven in attendance make up (most of) Peace Canal’s peacebuilding team, drawn together from the Nuer, Dinka and Murle communities of Lakes State and Jonglei-GPAA. 

I sat down with Executive Director of Peace Canal, Christine Kide, at the POF office in Juba to learn more about the important role that women have to play in the reduction of armed conflict amongst pastoralist communities in South Sudan. Christine taught me about the power of turning up and being present as a leader, the courage that that takes as a woman in male-dominated power structures, and what happens when the voices of the whole community are represented in the process of finding the solutions needed to end violent conflict. 

Peace Canal emerged as an experiment through the first phase of the Peacebuilding Opportunities Fund. There’s nothing new about the concept of a national NGO, but the advent of Peace Canal has led down a path that aims to push the envelope on structural barriers for national entities in South Sudan: strengthening core funding, ensuring competitive remuneration, freeing internal bandwidth to think about delivery strategy, and promoting advocacy for genuinely community-driven agendas.