Rethinking conflict prevention

Conflicts are escalating. Humanitarian needs are soaring. But at the same time, development funding is being cut, and trust is low in institutions designed to ensure peace and security. Those working on the ground in fragile and conflict-affected settings are openly questioning whether today’s humanitarian, development and peacebuilding systems are breaking or may even already be broken.
On day two of the Forum, the high-level panel ‘Rethinking conflict prevention’ will discuss the ways we need to rethink, reinvent and re-evaluate conflict management to adapt to today’s changing security landscape. The speakers will share lessons learned from across the world, including Afghanistan, Somalia and Qatar, as well as reflect on the ability of local, national, regional and international institutions to manage and restrain these conflicts as crises continue to deepen.
The panel will approach these issues by asking questions such as, how do we prevent conflict in today’s changing world? What instruments and approaches are being used by the United Nations, regional organization and local actors to do so, and how effective are they? What lessons can be learned for peace and security, and how can those lessons be applied to improve conflict prevention?

Moderator:
Per Olsson Fridh, Director General, Folke Bernadotte Academy

Speakers:
Majed Al Ansari, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Qatar and Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar
Itonde Kakoma, President, Interpeace
Catriona Laing, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, United Nations
Heela Yoon, Founder/CEO, Afghan Youth Ambassadors for Peace

The 2024 Stockholm Forum on Peace and Development will unpack the complex context in which humanitarian, development and peacebuilding actors are working and look at how actors are delivering on the ground in the face of these challenges. It will discuss ways to address growing mistrust and distrust between the Global North and South, and between citizens and their political representatives. It will explore how multilateral efforts—such as the Summit of the Future—could strengthen international arrangements for peace and security. And the Forum will look for possible pathways towards a more peaceful, unified future.