Phase I Study Report: Social Cohesion and Community Based Protection Mechanisms in Chad and Burundi

In Bujumbura and N’Djamena, we wish to thank the child protection team and wider agency staff in addition to the NGO members of the more than 30 agencies who took their time with us to confirm concepts and share their thoughts on the situation of children and wider communities in Burundi and Chad. [...] We would like to thank those who joined and supported us in the identification of respondents, organization of timing and location of interviews and administration of interviews themselves with long hours of transcription and translation from Kirundi to French in Burundi, and Sara to French in Chad. [...] The second is to enhance the understanding of the roles that community-based groups play in promoting social cohesion in communities, and in influencing outcomes towards the socialization, protection and education of children for the development of positive norms and lasting reconciliation; and finally, to support and enhance existing good practices among community-based groups that promote social. [...] Outcome five: contribute to the generation and use of evidence and knowledge in policies and programming related to education, conflict and peace building In recent years, UNICEF has emerged as a key partner in the area of peace building and promotion of social cohesion in conflict and post-conflict settings. [...] In addition to analysing community level conflicts, explaining the role and implications of informal and formal groups, shedding light on the value and legitimacy of traditional, informal and formal processes, an end goal of this study is to create a set of tools that will address gaps in community-level capacity to mitigate the effects of violence, manage conflicts and strengthen the protective e.