From February to December 2025, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), in partnership with the African Union (AU), the World Bank Group (WBG), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and GIZ, delivered a series of regional trainings on the Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA) in Early Warning. Conducted across Botswana, Uganda, Togo, and Burundi, the programme brought together civil society organizations (CSOs), National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs), and national peace infrastructures from across West, East, Southern, and Central Africa.

The trainings were designed to strengthen the capacity of CSOs to effectively contribute to conflict prevention. Through tailored and practice-oriented sessions, participants were able to immediately apply newly acquired skills, including the use of GIZ-developed platforms to report human rights violations directly into the African Union Early Warning System.

A concrete example of the training’s impact is reflected in Southern Africa, where a CSO network enhanced its capacity to document and report on the impact of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on children, including cases of abduction and forced recruitment.

The programme engaged a wide range of stakeholders. In total, 106 participants from 40 countries across the continent were trained.

The trainings were held in:

• Gaborone, Botswana (26 February – 3 March 2025)
• Entebbe, Uganda (6 – 9 March 2025)
• Lomé, Togo (29 September – 3 October 2025)
• Bujumbura, Burundi (9 – 12 December 2025)

The objectives of the programme are threefold: to introduce the legal and institutional frameworks guiding early warning processes in Africa; to promote the application of a Human Rights-Based Approach at every stage of the early warning cycle; and to strengthen understanding of how HRBA can be effectively integrated into early warning systems.

Here is a map showcasing the progress of the fellowship across regions.