BAGHLAN, TAKHAR - Women and religious scholars will benefit from increased participation in UNAMA-supported Provincial Advocacy Committees as part of the Afghan People’s Dialogue (APD) taking place in the north-eastern provinces of the country.

At their separate meetings in the provinces of Baghlan and Takhar, the committees discussed the outlined roadmap for peace in Afghanistan with members of civil society organizations, women’s rights activists and community elders.

The Provincial Advocacy Committees represent the latest development in national and local peace-building initiatives conducted over the last three years under the general framework of the Afghan People’s Dialogue initiative. As part of the initiative, more than 6,000 Afghans across the country have shared their grievances and aspirations and worked together to identify the main drivers of conflict and to propose solutions to achieve a sustainable, inclusive and just peace.

The People’s Dialogue meetings have raised awareness among Afghans about key issues to ensure that concerns are not only heard and amplified, but also incorporated by policy-makers into processes and plans for achieving sustainable peace in Afghanistan.

The findings of the earlier phase of the People’s Dialogue were published in a summary report in June 2014, entitled “Afghan People’s Dialogue on Peace: Building the Foundations for an Inclusive Peace Process.” A national conference held on 15 January 2015 in Kabul provided a chance for Afghan leaders to develop national advocacy strategies as part of province-level recommendations.

The work at the January 2015 conference built on the 2014 report. That work is now continuing in provincial meetings and with the formation of advocacy committees.

In their meetings in Baghlan and Takhar, the members of the committees called on the leaders of the National Unity Government to fulfill their commitments they made at the January conference regarding the full implementation of the recommendations of the APD report.

Both the committees reviewed the local roadmap for peace, provincial advocacy strategy, timeline and implementation challenges. They decided to draft provincial implementation plans and initiate the planned outreach advocacy meetings in their respective provinces.

So far 28 Provincial Advocacy Committees have been formed in different provinces of the country, while the remaining six committees will be established in the coming weeks. UNAMA is facilitating the meetings of these committees and providing technical support in coordinating their activities and formulating provincial advocacy strategies.