Anglophone Africa Regional Workshop on Culture and Peace, 19-23 May 2025, Harare, Zimbabwe
Event Date
The workshop was organized by the Peace, Governance and Equality Section (PGE) and the Embassy in Harare. It brought together 30 participants, including SDC/FDFA colleagues from COOFs/embassies in Egypt, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, and Zimbabwe, as well as cultural and peacebuilding actors, artists, and experts from the region. The workshop provided a unique space for exchange and peer learning, bringing together actors from development cooperation, peace, and culture to explore the nexus between “culture and peace” in development cooperation from different perspectives.
Event Details
Conditions of participation
Only for FDFA/SDC staff in the Anglophone Africa and on invitation.
Registration closed.
In-person event (no online participation).
Language of the event
English
Contact
AEBISCHER Barbara
Eichenweg 5
Switzerland - 3052 Zollikofen
Documents and papers
SDC's peace engagement
At the end of May 2025, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), under the leadership of its Peace, Governance and Equality (PGE) section in Bern and the Embassy of Switzerland in Zimbabwe, convened a dynamic regional workshop in Harare. Themed around the vital nexus between culture and peace, the workshop brought together practitioners, peacebuilders, and cultural actors from across Anglophone Africa, with participants representing Egypt, Kenya, Rwanda, Tunisia, Mozambique, Tanzania, South Sudan, South Africa, Switzerland and Zimbabwe.
In a world increasingly marked by polarisation, division and conflict, the importance of the SDC's peace engagement is growing, (2022: 118 projects, 70% conflict sensitivity plus, 30% actual peace projects). In addition, culture plays a pivotal role in sustaining peace by fostering dialogue, understanding, tolerance, and cooperation among diverse communities. According to the “SDC Thematic Guidance on Culture and Development”, confirmed by the directorate in May 2024, the SDC's cultural mandate aims to strengthen independent, diverse and participatory cultural sectors and actors in partner countries that make an important contribution to sustainable development, democratic participation, conflict prevention and peace.
Culture is not a luxury
The workshop, dedicated to advancing the topic of ‘culture and peace’ at the country and regional levels in Anglophone Africa and to enlarging the space for this work, reaffirmed a fundamental truth: culture is not a peripheral luxury, but a powerful driver of unity, healing, and sustaining peace.
The Regional Workshop placed particular emphasis on the three categories: Resilience, Spaces, and Shifts” suggested by the “Reflection Paper on Culture and Sustaining Peace” These three interconnected concepts framed discussions around how artists and cultural communities across the region are adapting and responding to social and political changes, often under restrictive or fragile conditions.
Protect spaces for artistic expression
The workshop examined how creative resilience continues to thrive even in the face of adversity; how safe, inclusive spaces for artistic expression can be nurtured or reclaimed; and how cultural roles and platforms are shifting in their influence on peacebuilding, governance, and civic engagement.
Opening the workshop, the Ambassador of Switzerland to Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi, Mr. Stéphane Rey, underscored this message:
“Arts and culture are more than reflections of society; they are tools for healing and unity. Through music, theatre, or storytelling, cultural expression bridges divides where words alone fail. From all over the world, communities harness culture not only to preserve memory but to reimagine futures. In an era of polarisation, the power of culture to unite is indispensable.”
The opening session also featured compelling contributions from two prominent Zimbabwean voices in the cultural and peacebuilding sectors: Ms. Perlagia Kapuya of the Zimbabwe Peace Project and Mr. Raphael Chikukwa, Executive Director of the National Gallery of Zimbabwe. Their interventions illustrated the workshop’s core focus, showcasing how Zimbabwean artists are cultivating resilience in their practices, navigating shifting spaces for expression, and innovating ways to sustain cultural relevance in complex social contexts.
Throughout the four-day programme, participants explored rich case studies of how culture contributes to sustaining peace across the continent. The Swiss-supported initiative Hakuna Matata in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado region is one such example, instilling hope and community resilience in a region deeply affected by violence and displacement through theatre and music. In Rwanda, the collaboration with ESPACE Plus shows how storytelling and performing arts contribute to constructive dialogue both at national and regional levels participating in countering hate speech”. The Swiss regional “Culture for Peace” programme, implemented in Somalia, with cross-border reach to North-Eastern Kenya and South-Eastern Ethiopia, aims to enhance social cohesion, peacebuilding, and regional cultural identity by safeguarding and promoting Somali tangible and intangible cultural heritage. Other case studies, including experiences from Zimbabwe, highlighted innovative approaches on how arts and culture can contribute to trauma healing in post-conflict recovery and inclusive governance.
Culture is key in building peace
A key highlight of the workshop was a virtual session with Mr. Nicolas Randin, Assistant Director General and Head of the Africa Division at the SDC. In his address, Mr. Randin reiterated Switzerland’s commitment to elevating the role of culture within its international cooperation framework:
“Switzerland recognizes that culture is not only central to identity but increasingly a strategic component in building peace and strengthening governance. Exploring this nexus is essential for our development cooperation going forward.”
The workshop aligned very well with Switzerland’s broader foreign policy focus on peace promotion and conflict prevention, especially in fragile contexts. Switzerland has been actively supporting peace processes and inclusive dialogue across the continent. Its approach prioritises local ownership, cultural sensitivity, and the strengthening of institutions. By integrating culture into peacebuilding, Switzerland recognises the importance of contextually rooted solutions that foster resilience, social cohesion, and inclusive governance.
The workshop also provided space for participants to reflect on their own national and local contexts and formulate policy messages around culture, peace, and governance. In addition, a generic Theory of Change was developed for each of the three categories – resilience, spaces and shifts – which can be used to design new (phases of) cultural projects. As the workshop concluded, one message rang clear: investing in culture is investing into the social fabric and therefore also investing into conflict prevention and security. From Cairo to Cape Town, Harare to Kigali, the arts continue to be a lifeline for societies seeking to reconcile with their past, make sense of their present, and imagine peaceful futures.