A high-level panel at Geneva Peace Week 2025 explored the potential of decent work and food security as key drivers of conflict prevention, social cohesion and sustainable peace in fragile and post-conflict settings.
Hosted by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the session brought together representatives from the UN Peacebuilding Fund, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Interpeace and the Danish Refugee Council from Sudan. The discussions highlighted practical ways to create livelihoods that rebuild economies while promoting inclusion and resilience.
Conflict prevention and social inclusion
Marcus Lenzen, the Fund's Deputy Chief, said the Pact for the Future's adoption was a "turning point" in recognizing conflict prevention as a universal public good.
"Peace cannot be imposed," he said. "It has to be nationally owned and locally driven. Without tangible improvements in people's socio-economic well-being, peace remains elusive."
Lenzen highlighted the growing role of the Fund in supporting prevention-focused initiatives that combine livelihoods, climate resilience and social inclusion - often in partnership with development agencies like the ILO and FAO.
Nieves Thomet, Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus Advisor at the ILO, stressed that decent jobs are "symbols of dignity, belonging and stability."
Thomet shared insights from a joint ILO-FAO-IOM program in Mauritania, supported by the Fund, which prevents climate-related conflicts by promoting dialogue and decent employment.
"Peace can only endure if communities lead and shape the process," she emphasized.
Julius Jackson, head of FAO's Conflict and Peace Unit, underlined the close connection between food security, resilience and peace. "Up to 80 per cent of people in fragile settings rely on agriculture," Jackson said. "Without secure livelihoods, conflict risks multiply."
He shared examples where FAO programs combine peacebuilding with the development of agricultural value chains. In Kenya's Kakuma and Uganda's Kiryandongo settlements, refugees and host communities work together to cultivate high-value crops.
In Somalia, a Fund-backed project uses digital mapping to help youth mediate land and water disputes.
Local peacebuilders in Sudan
Joining virtually from Darfur, Ismail Younus Mohammed, Peacebuilding Specialist at the Danish Refugee Council, and Alrasheed Mohammed Eisa, Head of the Peace and Reconciliation Committee in Central Darfur, shared firsthand insights.
With formal government absent, local peace committees have stepped up to resolve disputes, reopen roads, and restore livelihoods across divided areas. "We focus on harmonizing community life so that people can continue to live and work despite the violence," Mohammed explained.
Inclusive economic recovery
The experts agreed that sustainable peace depends on inclusive economic recovery. Partnerships between the UN, governments and local actors are vital to ensure livelihoods - especially for women, youth and displaced people - promote social cohesion and lasting stability.
Federico Negro, Senior Specialist for Coordination and Crisis Response at ILO, said: "Tangible peace dividends - jobs, food, dignity - are what transform peacebuilding from an aspiration into a lived reality."
