Bishkek, June 23 - The UNDP Programme for Building Resilience to Violent Extremism (STRIVE Asia) has established community-based advisory groups in nine local governments, which are based on existing Community Prevention Centres (CPCs).

The community advisory groups are part of the CPC and consist of representatives of young people, women, religious leaders, law enforcement agencies and local authorities. These groups identified the causes of violent extremism and developed measures to prevent violent ideologies and practices among vulnerable groups in each community.

Between 2021 and 2022, the advisory groups received training and workshops on basic knowledge of the history, causes, factors and differences between violent extremism and other forms of social tensions. Further, in all 9 pilots, the participants of the consultative groups were trained in conflict analysis, interaction with LSG bodies and local communities in conflict prevention and prevention. As a result, local plans for preventing violent extremism were developed.

Small grants aimed at increasing social cohesion in local communities to prevent violent ideologies and practices were given to launch the local plans. Each of the nine pilots identified unique needs and demands. In the city of Kara-Balta, it is the strengthening of intergenerational ties. To this end, local activists chose sports and organised tournaments in chess, toguz korgool and besh-tash. And in the village of Kochubaeva, in the Chekabad Aiyl aimag of Osh Oblast, a family sports competition among kindergarten employees' families was held to strengthen family unity and friendship among villagers. Each pilot also conducted educational activities where residents were told about the causes of radicalisation and what villagers and townspeople can and should do to live peacefully.

The implementation of the project on prevention and avoidance of extremism has been underway since 2020 in 9 pilot communities:

1. Balykchy city of Issyk-Kul oblast;

2. Kochkor aiyl okmotu of Naryn oblast;

3. Kara-Balta city of Chui oblast;

4. Kara-Buura aiyl okmotu of Talas Oblast;

5. Chek-Abad aiyl okmotu of Osh oblast;

6. Nookat town of Osh oblast;

7. Bazar-Korgon aiyl okmotu of Jalalabad Oblast;

8. Aidarken town of Batken oblast;

9. Isfana town of Batken oblast.

Strengthening resilience of local communities is being implemented under the UNDP project "Enhancing Resilience to Violent Extremism in Asia (STRIVE Asia), funded by the European Union under the EU-UN Joint Partnership.

The overall objective of STRIVE Asia is to contribute to the prevention of violent extremism (CVE) in Central Asia, South-East Asia and South Asia through a multi-stakeholder collaborative approach involving governments, security actors, local authorities and communities, civil society, academia, media and the private sector.

Photo album of small grants events: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjzUgit

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Media contacts: Nurzhan Alymkanova, UNDP Communications Officer nurzhan.alymkanova@undp.org