Social Science Research Council

The workshop on Children and Armed Conflict in the Great Lakes Region, held on 15-17 December in Nairobi, Kenya, was organized by the International Research Network on Children and Armed Conflict (coordinated by the Social Science Research Council) in partnership with the Office of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, UNICEF and the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers. The workshop brought together a combination of about 30 participants from Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda who work on children and armed conflict in the region from government, NGOs (local and international), activist and advocacy groups as well as research institutions.

Key issues for discussion at the workshop were: (1) girls and young women in armed conflict; (2) monitoring and reporting on child recruitment and other violations; and (3) identifying and strengthening local capacity for research and advocacy. The workshop succeeded in accomplishing its objectives to develop better networking and collaboration between institutions and individuals undertaking research, advocacy and programs on children and armed conflict in these four countries as well as establish knowledge gaps and priority areas for research, policy and practical interventions in the field of children and armed conflict.