Post a comment 
The Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion (ICPNC) is set to strengthen knowledge-sharing among its staff and communities following the return of three of its officials from an Environmental Emergency Response and Peace Seminar in China.
The three staff members, who represented the Commission at the international seminar, presented their certificates to ICPNC Executive Secretary Madam Hawa Sally Samai during a meeting at the Commission.
The delegation was led by Deputy Executive Secretary Moses Margao and included Deputy Director of Conflict Prevention, Simeonette Uwanie Pontis, and Conflict Resolution Officer for the North-West Region, Francis Patterson.
Mr Margao thanked the Board and staff of the Commission for providing the opportunity for them to represent the ICPNC in China. He expressed hope that more Commission staff would benefit from similar international training opportunities in the future.
According to Mr Margao, the seminar provided the team with an opportunity to exchange experiences with participants from different countries and gain new perspectives that could be applied to their work in peacebuilding and conflict prevention.
Ms Pontis described the seminar as educational, informative and engaging. She said the team made presentations during the programme and interacted with participants from different countries, while also learning more about China.
She also highlighted the warm reception the delegation received, saying the experience had changed some of her earlier perceptions about the Chinese people.
Mr Patterson said the team was proud to represent both Sierra Leone and the ICPNC. He noted that the seminar also provided an opportunity for them to showcase Sierra Leonean culture to the Chinese people and participants from other countries.
Receiving the certificates, Madam Samai congratulated the three officials and emphasised that the real value of international training would be measured by how the knowledge gained is translated into practical action.
She therefore encouraged the team to organise knowledge-sharing sessions for other ICPNC staff and extend relevant lessons from the training to communities.
Madam Samai stressed that international training opportunities should have a wider impact beyond the individuals who participate, particularly when the knowledge gained can help communities prevent and resolve conflicts before they escalate.
She also expressed appreciation to the Government of China for providing training opportunities for Sierra Leoneans.
The Executive Secretary further underscored the importance of establishing strong institutional systems within the Commission to ensure continuity and effective service delivery even when there are changes in leadership.
The ICPNC says the experience gained by the three staff members will therefore be shared with colleagues and communities as part of efforts to strengthen conflict prevention, resolution and peacebuilding across Sierra Leone.
