By Ragan M. Conteh

“The world needs peace, and peace, like change, can only come from within.” These were the direct words of the Chairperson of the Forum Against Harmful Practices (FAHP), who doubles as the Director of the Amazonian Initiative Movement (AIM-SL) Madam Rugiatu Neneh Turay while delivering a cohesive peace messages at the “Just Peace Festival” organized by N’ninke, at the Hague, Netherlands.

According to Madam Turay, pursuing peace is one of the few values they share across cultural, political, and linguistic divides.

The challenge however she said comes in with understanding what ‘peace’ really means and how they are able to pursue it, adding that peace means different thing to different people.

She maintained that, community definition should be considered and hold paramount in terms of promoting peace.

She highlighted that from her community work and experience, peace is built on an empowered society, realizing the role of the community and availing opportunities to all without discrimination and favor.

In the absence of wars, she stated, disempowerment is also the opposite of peace — so to have peace, people need to have structures and the strength and opportunity to find peace “from within” to act with peace toward others and to have a peaceful society.

“When I speak with my colleagues and the communities we work with, they often share what feels automatically true to them: There can be no peace in the absence of opportunity. Peace is impossible when you’re living in poverty, unable to feed your child, pay for your education, or see any path to a stable future for yourself or your family,” Turay told her audience.

In many parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, she said, real progress and peace that allows for these needs of people being addressed needs structural change, stating that it starts in the communities, in the villages, in the hearts of the people but it must also be supported by the people in power, their elected officials through policies. “We need the grassroots and the government to work hand in hand from a holistic approach bottom-up and top-down that’s the only way real lasting change can take root and grow,” She emphasized.

“How did I come to this conclusion, and what is this view based on? Well, it extends beyond my own life, although it is based on that as well, but it goes into the context of my country, Sierra Leone’s recent history:

Sierra Leone, a beautiful coastal country in West Africa, has a complex history shaped by colonization, which disrupted traditional systems of governance, conflict resolution, and community care,” she added.

She went on to say that after independence, power remained concentrated in the hands of local elites, leaving most people disempowered and marginalized—conditions that contributed to instability and ultimately led to the devastating civil senseless 11 year rebel war.

She insisted that to prevent history from repeating itself, they must learn from the past and recognize what was overlooked: the strengths within people and communities, especially the traditional social support systems that once upheld justice, cohesion, and wellbeing.

Today, Turay pointed out, most Sierra Leoneans, still lived in rural areas, guided by their customs and communal values. “Yet, as in many African countries, our youth, the majority, grow up without adequate education, job opportunities, or hope for the future. Many are left feeling trapped, and in desperation, flee their homes in search of dignity and a life with meaning or remain in frustration with the majority living on drug.”

Madam Director said within these communities lie potential conflict and violence or peace, respect and mutual support. For peace to be real and lasting, it must grow from within: from the people themselves and not imposed from the outside, and it must also be nurtured and promoted.

She cited an example to this work to eliminate the harmful traditional practice of Female Genital Mutilation tied to health complications and gender inequality.

“With our experience over the years, and the efforts of many western organizations, it is clear that when Female Genital Mutilation is addressed by outsiders, pushing a foreign framework, it cannot be successful and actually leads to more unrest and a lack of peace, and opposition from the community,” she lamented.

Meanwhile, Madam Turay highlighted that when the issue is approached through local solutions that respect cultural context and include all stakeholders’ perspectives, real change becomes possible. “The strategy I developed, the Neneh Strategy is such a community-developed, culturally sensitive method to combat FGM that preserves the positive aspects of Sierra Leonean women’s culture, addresses the importance of tradition, while ending harmful practices,” she said.

According to Madam Rugiatu Turay, at the core of it, there is an emphasis on inclusive dialogue, learning and peace-building, and empowering girls and women through education, income generating activities, respect and choice.

She alluded to the fact that, the transformation is also made possible by activating the existing social support systems embedded in community culture.

She stressed that in this way the change comes from within the individuals and communities and so creates lasting and sustainable peace and social progress.

Turay said the principles behind the Neneh Strategy, local ownership, cultural sensitivity, and holistic empowerment, are not limited to addressing FGM alone.

She pointed out that they represent a wider approach to development that strengthens community resilience and dignity across all areas of life.

“This is embodied in what I see as a blueprint for sustainable peace and progress: the NNINKIE promoted Rothumba Project,” she asserted.

She spoke on how Rothumba Project represents a model of contemporary African, community-led development that integrates social, economic, and medical components. Crucially, it was conceived by the community itself, it shows what becomes possible when people are not treated as passive beneficiaries but as agents of their own transformation.

Madam Rugiatu Neneh Turay said education, livelihood opportunities, healthcare, and intergenerational collaboration all come together in a holistic framework, enabling communities to thrive on their own terms, with strength, independence, and vision.

Just as with the Neneh Strategy, he said, the Rothumba Project demonstrates that real change begins within, inside the individual, the family, and the village, but for that change to be sustainable and far-reaching, grassroots action must be met with top-down commitment.

He maintained that the structural transformation is essential, stating that that’s why NNINKIE doesn’t stop at community development or work with communities in villages to stop FGM and empower girls.

“We also engage with policymakers, religious and traditional leaders, academics, and those who shape public opinion and national priorities, and now even the international community. Because without top-down change in the form of supportive policies, funding, and institutional backing, even the most powerful community efforts can be limited in scale and without the protection and recognition they deserve,” she stated.

“I invite the world to have a closer look at this model, where communities are empowered to design and own their own “development” and where traditions are not erased but evolved, and where peace is not imposed but grown from within. Now I leave you with these questions:  I don’t need your answers but ponder over them in pursuance of peace. Are your governments, institutions, and leaders investing in the kind of change your communities, country and the world desire? Are the voices of the marginalized, like rural communities, girls, and young people in your country, truly being heard? Because if peace is to be real, it must be felt by all, not just imagined by a few, she concluded.