The core foundation of the Community Peace Programme is that within an appropriate and facilitative regulatory framework, internal local knowledge and skills can be used as, and in some cases more, successfully than professional assistance from the outside.

In August 2009 there were in excess of 180 projects in South Africa which have facilitated over 33 000 peace gatherings.  This has generated approximately R3 million in revenue for Peace Committees.  This entire amount has been spent in these communities.  We have analysed reports reflecting that over 350 000 people have been involved in participating directly in solving problems in their communities through Peace Gatherings. 

The work of the Peace Committees is recognised by local police station commissioners and magistrates as complementing their own professional activity, and they encourage community members to make use of the service provided by the Peace Committees.  Local authorities recognise Peace Committees as a reliable and non-politicised means of communicating and listening to poor communities.

The intention to build a sustainable and replicable model has been there from the beginning for the Community Peace Programme.  Building a model is very different from just carrying out a successful project in one community.  To achieve this, a built-in process of reflection and discussion and documentation of what does and does not work has been conducted.  Each step has been tested for efficiency and effectiveness along the way, without the values and priorities that were agreed upon by all concerned at the beginning of the project being compromised. 

In its exact form the Peace Committee Model cannot be exported or transferred to other environments.  However what underlies the particular practices and structures of the Peace Committee Model is a more fundamental set of assumptions, principles and ways of thinking about governance and the limits of professional expertise.  The Peace Committee Model has attracted attention from practitioners and scholars from Europe, North and South America, Australia and Africa, who have come to visit and observe Peace Committees in action. 

The most recent development has been the introduction of the Community Peace Programme into 100 primary and secondary schools.  This development sees two main benefits – it guarantees the sustainability of the Peace Committee Model by incorporating it into an existing community-based infrastructure, and it opens up the Peace Committee experience more readily to participation by children and youth, both as committee members and as disputants seeking facilitation.

Peace is a precondition for development and learning and this initiative will lead to peace within the schools which will result in uninterrupted learning and better education.

A safe and secure environment is integral to the social, political and economic life of every individual and community.  The Community Peace Programme is concerned with the development and growth of communities, encouraging meaningful participation in society, and assisting communities to attain an acceptable standard of living.  The programme considers the needs of  broader society and addresses security issues.  The Community Peace Programme responds to needs in government and policing. 

The Community Peace Programme integrates community based knowledge and ability with that of the education system, social services and the criminal justice system. The programme continues to help people recognise that they can solve their own problems.   

Peace Talks

PeaceTalks is an annual event where Peace Committee members are educated in the process of PeaceMaking and PeaceBuilding. 

Peace Awards

The winners of the PeaceAwards are chosen from the top performing Peace Committees in each category, which are: Number of Cases, Average Response Time, Community Member Involvement, Success Rate with Plan of Action and Level of Resolution Satisfaction.

In each category the prize money is R100 000!  This money will be used in the community for projects identified by the winning Peace Committees.