Cairo, Egypt - CCCPA recently launched its training program on Preventing Radicalization and Extremism Leading to Terrorism (PRELT) in Africa. The training is the first of its kind in Africa to approach the prevention of radicalization as a community-based activity, using traditional and Islamic inclusive narratives. The program aims to equip local leaders and influencers with the necessary knowledge and skills to refute extremist interpretations of Islam, while propagating an alternative narrative of peace and coexistence within their local communities.
 
CCCPA organized two pilot trainings in Cairo on 4-7 September and 18-22 September 2016, respectively, for Somali local leaders. The trainings brought together 47 tribal, religious, youth and women leaders and influencers from across Somalia. The final day of the training allowed participants to evaluate the training course and provide their feedback – that was very positive. One participant said: “This training is different from others, because I have learned how to analyze the root of the problem and identify actors involved”. Another participant confirmed that the training is “unique and balanced because it refers to the Quran and Hadith”.
 
This training is unprecedented in the field of the prevention of radicalization and extremism in its inclusion of simple and basic explanations of the Rules and Ethics of War and Peace in Islam. A distinguished Islamic scholar delves into the foundations of peace narratives in Islam, while trainers with in-depth expertise in Somali affairs analyze the local context within which those narratives can have an impact. The uniqueness of CCCPA’s approach relies as well in the understanding of radicalization and extremism in Somalia through conflict analysis. The approach also considers radicalization to be an individual pathway that involves contextual as well as personal variables. During the training, trainers relied on interactive and practical group work to perform content analysis of extremist narratives and messaging strategies, before guiding participants through the exercise of building their own inclusive peace narratives. 
 
In the coming months, CCCPA will be organizing additional training courses designed for local community actors in Nigeria. The Center also envisages to deliver an advanced training course with an in depth focus on PRELT’s theological aspects. This training will be specially conceived for imams and religious scholars. Furthermore, CCCPA plans to expand its geographical scope to include other affected and vulnerable regions including the Sahel, Sahara as well as North Africa.