Conflict resolution in Liberia

Online event: Community Based Sociotherapy Liberia

How did Community Based Sociotherapy contribute to a more peaceful future for communities in Liberia? An online expert meeting around this question will be held on Thursday 12 January 2023. Anyone interested in peacebuilding in post conflict countries can register for the event here.

12 December 2022

Online Event on Ten years of CBS 

Towards a peaceful future in Liberia

To restore trust and contribute to a more peaceful future, ZOA has introduced Community Based Sociotherapy (CBS) in Liberia in 2013. Why was this methodology effective? What could trainers in other post conflict contexts learn from ten years of CBS in Liberia? ZOA and IICBS organize an online expert meeting about this subject, on Thursday 12 January 2023, 13.30 – 15.00 CET. Anyone interested in peacebuilding in post conflict countries, is welcome to join.

“During the war so many things happened”, said a CBS participant in Liberia. “We lost trust in each other. CBS gave us a platform to break the barriers of silence and to express ourselves, so that we don’t continue to live with hate.”

Community Based Sociotherapy is a group based, psychosocial methodology to restore and strengthen feelings of safety, trust, dignity and social cohesion in communities affected by violent conflicts. In the past 10 years, over 30.000 people have participated in CBS sessions in Liberia. ZOA and partner IICBS have worked in partnership with YMCA Liberia and the Peace Hub Liberia.

Impact

What has been the impact of CBS? What can we learn for our work in other post conflict countries where people are in need of effective community based Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) interventions? That’s what the online event on Thursday 12 January is about. ZOA, IICBS and the Liberian partners will all share their insights.

CBS in Liberia

During the event, ZOA and IICBS will present their experiences with the methodology in Liberia. Subsequently, a paper on ten years of CBS in Liberia will be launched and talked about in breakout sessions about:

  • CBS in practice: how does it work for community groups, schools and leaders? 

  • How to start CBS in my country or organisation? 

  • How to measure the effects of community based MHPSS with bottom up indicators? 

In the concluding remarks, best practices for success of CBS in other contexts will be discussed.

Registration

The online expert meeting will be held on Thursday 12 January 2023, 13.30 – 15.00 CET. 

In case of questions please contact Corita Corbijn, ZOA peacebuilding advisor at c.corbijn@zoa.ngo

Please register here before 12 January 2023