Church leaders and youth at the crossroads of holistic peace, sustainability and social cohesion
Reflections from the FECCLAHA regional forum, October 2025
Peace is not an outcome and negotiable. It’s a process that needs all of us. This message resonated deeply with me when I was at the FECCLAHA regional ecumenical forum in Entebbe, Uganda in late October. FECCLAHA stands for Fellowship of Christian Councils and Churches in the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa. It has held its forum every two years since 2011, rotating among several East African countries, focusing on a specific theme. This year, young leaders, faith leaders and peacebuilders from across the region led the forum, entitled Leadership, Regional Integration and Creation: The Church as an actor for holistic peace.
FECCLAHA* is a regional ecumenical body consisting of churches and church councils in the Great Lakes region and Horn of Africa. It was formally launched in March 1999 and registered in Kenya in February 2000. The organization, a KAIROS partner**, provides a platform for members to share perspectives on issues of common concern, particularly regarding peacebuilding and conflict transformation, and to foster strong ecumenical cooperation in taking ownership and responsibility for problems in the region and proactively seek solutions to them.
As a young leader and global partnership coordinator for the African region, working on sustainable development, and the intersections of peace, gender and climate, this gathering reminded me of something I have witnessed over and over again. Youth leaders and important participants like churches are thirsty for change. More than passive observers of the current crises, they are shapers of solutions. Both groups play an important role in upholding peace in transitional and electoral processes and speaking truth to power.
The first item on my agenda was to prepare for the FECCLAHA’s youth general assembly, which I had the privilege of organizing and facilitating with the FECCLAHA team. The youth space was one of learning, unlearning, community and connection. The activities of the dialogue targeted mainly15 youth (below the age of 35) of all genders from Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Sudan and South Sudan. The youth assembly was therefore a unique platform to elevate the links between the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Youth Peace and Security (YPS) across East Africa
The youth general assembly sought to examine youth approaches to peace and security in the region and to deepen the understanding of youth on the existing frameworks on the YPS agenda (specifically the 10-year-old UNSCR 2250) as well as the SDGs while identifying existing gaps for policy advocacy. At the end of the day, a statement – call to action – was developed by young leaders and presented to the FECCLAHA’s General Assembly and related agencies.
Many of the young leaders who attended the assembly had previous experience in spaces such as this one. Their experience and contributions were to me a powerful reminder and statement – that they know better that anyone else the realities and policies affecting their communities when it comes to YPS and the SDGs. When youth are given space, they show up with purpose, clarity and solutions.
The days following the youth assembly were devoted to meetings with FECCLAHA and its partners. Discussions revolved around holistic peace and ethical leadership, social cohesion, regional integration and care for creation and roadmaps to action. Each of these sessions were interactive and led by leaders of organizations from across East Africa. During the session on Ethical Leadership and Holistic Peace, it struck me the pivotal role of the Church in enhancing peaceful transitions in our societies and countries. Conversations made us understand that the Church can be a role model of Ethical Leadership and a shining city on the hill when it takes a sincere look at its own handling of diversity of perspectives, of transitions and challenges of external expectations.
The second day was focused on regional integration and social cohesion. In a panel session, I presented KAIROS’ Women Peacebuilders addressing Climate, Conflict, and Gender project as an existing good practice of Care for Creation and peace. The project aims to address the disproportionate effects of gender inequality, climate change and conflict on women and girls in Colombia, the DRC, South Sudan and Palestine. KAIROS’ partner, South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC), accompanied me on the panel. Priscilla Ajak, Women Link coordinator for SSCC, shed light on existing activities in her country, fostering a more sustainable, equitable, resilient and peaceful South Sudan by enhancing local capacity and strengthening the impact of gender-transformative approaches to interconnected challenges. She delivered a clear message! Peace and sustainable initiatives and high-level peace processes are not feasible without the participation of local participants, including faith leaders, women, youth and civil societies. In fact, local peace initiatives are crucial to facilitate dialogues at the community level and promote cohesive societies, preventing flaring conflicts in a specific territory.
KAIROS also supported staff of Héritiers de la Justice from eastern DRC, another partner in our project with women peacebuilders at the nexus of climate, conflict and gender, to participate in the gathering. During our days together, there were many opportunities to share experiences, activities and strategies related to addressing this triple nexus and to implementing this joint project in South Sudan and DRC. On day two, Héritiers de la Justice shared insights on how church leaders and NGOs leverage the trust and authority with which they are credited in speaking against the current violent conflict in eastern DRC. They also spoke about how empowering women peacebuilders through livelihoods projects can foster peace processes.
Finally, on the last day we discussed a road map to action. It was an important conversation concerning churches, councils and communities coming together to widen their engagement towards protection of Creation, including adaptation to climate change as a factor of peace building and conflict prevention. Something came out from the conversations, and it was clear that for all of us present, nature plays an important role in our endeavors to live together in peace.
One of my key takeaways from the regional gathering is the urgent need for shared leadership and accountability. These conversations with church leaders and young people should not only be symbolic but a strategic necessity.
The forum brought together faith, justice and peace. These conversations must convert into actions and not stop at conferences and dialogues. They must translate into ongoing and concrete partnerships and opportunities to shift the script and change the systems that affect us.
By Danielle Kamtié, Global Partnerships Coordinator: Africa and Climate Justice
* FECCLAHA has members in eight National Councils and three churches from ten countries namely: Burundi, D.R. Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. KAIROS also has partners in some of these countries, Héritiers de la Justice in DRC and South Sudan Council of Churches.
** FECCLAHA and KAIROS Canada have a strong partnership, with KAIROS supporting FECCLAHA’s work in Eastern Africa and the Great Lakes region through joint projects, advocacy and solidarity initiatives. KAIROS views FECCLAHA as a key partner in implementing strategic goals. Together we work with KAIROS’ other partners – Héritiers de la Justice (DRC) and South Sudan Council of Churches to advocate for justice and human rights.
