During the violent clashes between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz in the southern part of Kyrgyzstan in June 2010, seven international NGOs in the country joined forces in a new alliance, TASK (Transition Alliance for South Kyrgyzstan), to coordinate their emergency response.
The work of the seven organisations was so efficient that the delegation of the EU to Kyrgyzstan approached them with a suggestion to fund a continuation of their collaboration on reducing the conflicts. The organisations have chosen ACT Alliance – CA / DanChurchAid to spearhead this work.
The EU grant allows the seven organisations and their nine local partners to achieve the following results over the next 18 months:
TASK - Transition Alliance for South Kyrgyzstan
The seven organisations in TASK are:
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DanChurchAid (DK)
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ICCO (NL)
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ACTED (GB)
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Danish Refugee Council (DK)
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Save the children
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HELVETAS (CH)
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International Alert (GB)
Mapping of conflicts
Existing and potential conflicts (e.g. about land and water) will be mapped in order to focus the peace building interventions where they are most needed.
Educating local mediators
A group of local mediators will be trained and conduct mediation in local conflicts and disputes in order to avoid disagreements escalating and turning into violent situations.
Psycho-social Support
A local corps of people will be trained to perform crisis counselling on victims of violence or other violations of basic human rights. This counselling intends to alleviate anger and prevent revengefulness.
Legal aid
Assistance on legal matters so that victims of violent attacks can have their case tried in the public legal system – and also to force the system to handle unpleasant cases.
Supporting local development projects
Local conflicts can be resolved by supporting collaboration on a common, local need, e.g. the boring of a well or the renovation of a school. TASK donates the material and the local community provides the labour.
Integrating marginalized youth in the economy
During the conflict, many aggressors were vulnerable youth who face unemployment and bleak prospects for the future. TASK will provide vocational training and encourage business opportunities to help integrate them into the mainstream economy.
"This significant grant from EU provides the TASK consortium with a good opportunity to contribute to the recovery of post-conflict Kyrgyzstan. An added value of the programme is that the seven biggest INGOs and their eight local partners will work together, which is a good example of cooperation, coordination and transparency for other aid organizations. ACT Alliance and DCA are very proud to be the lead agency in this programme,” says Tatiana Kotova, DanChurchAid’s Regional Representative in Kyrgyzstan.