History

Conflict a major contributor to Africa’s state of poverty and underdevelopment

Coalition for Peace in Africa (COPA) was formed in 1995/1996 when a group of concerned Africans met in Nairobi, Kenya. They exchanged their insights and experiences on the prevention of the escalation of violent conflict in Africa. They were convinced that they needed to offer continual practical support to people and organizations on the ground faced with volatile and potentially violent conflict situations. They also recognized conflict as a major contributor to Africa’s deplorable state of poverty and underdevelopment.

The peace builders that came together in Nairobi found that there were no appropriate support networks for them to access and work together as peace practitioners. They founded Coalition for Peace in Africa (COPA). Initial membership of the network came from different parts of Africa – mainly alumni of the Working with Conflict Course offered by Responding to Conflict (RTC) in Birmingham, UK. Later on membership expanded to include other individuals and organizations interested in peace and security all over Africa.

A secretariat was set up in Johannesburg, South Africa, later moving to Nairobi, Kenya in 2002. Today COPA has expanded its programmatic areas beyond offering capacity building trainings to include direct interventions that target women and youth in peace building and conflict resolution.