Rural Smiles Foundation successfully convened a consultative meeting with Local Council I, Local Council II, and Subcounty Councillors under the Youth Voices for Peace: Community Dialogue and Safe Participation Initiative. The meeting was organized as part of our efforts to strengthen locally led peacebuilding, deepen safe participation, and ensure that community-based solutions are at the center of our work.

The consultation provided an important platform for grassroots leaders to reflect on the realities affecting peace and social cohesion within their communities. As frontline local leaders, LC I, LC II, and Subcounty Councillors play a critical role in identifying tensions early, mediating disputes, and maintaining everyday relationships between citizens and local governance structures. Their experience and knowledge made the meeting especially valuable in helping Rural Smiles Foundation better understand the issues that continue to shape insecurity, division, and exclusion at community level.

During the meeting, participants discussed a number of pressing challenges affecting peaceful coexistence. These included land-related disputes, intergenerational tensions, gender-based violence, limited youth participation in local decision-making, misinformation, and the shrinking of safe civic spaces where people can raise concerns constructively. Local leaders noted that many conflicts in rural areas are not sudden; they often grow gradually from unresolved grievances, lack of communication, and the exclusion of certain groups especially young people and women from meaningful participation in decisions that directly affect their lives.

A central objective of the meeting was not only to identify problems, but also to extract ideas from local leaders and jointly develop practical responses. Through the discussion, participants emphasized the importance of regular community dialogue, stronger collaboration between youth and local leadership, early identification of tensions, and the use of community-based mediation approaches before disputes escalate into more serious conflict. They also highlighted the need to create more trusted and inclusive spaces where community members can speak openly, engage peacefully, and contribute to local solutions without fear.

The meeting reaffirmed Rural Smiles Foundation’s belief that sustainable peace must be co-created with communities, not designed for them from a distance. By engaging local councils and subcounty leaders directly, the consultation ensured that the implementation of the Youth Voices for Peace initiative remains grounded in local realities and shaped by those who understand the challenges most closely. This process of shared reflection and joint planning is essential to building community ownership and long-term commitment to peacebuilding efforts.

The ideas and recommendations generated during the meeting will directly inform the next stages of the project. In particular, they will guide the organization of community peace dialogues and mediation sessions, the strengthening of youth peace ambassadors, and the design of activities that promote safe participation and early warning. These next steps will build on the priorities identified by local leaders and help ensure that the initiative responds to both immediate tensions and the deeper structural issues that undermine peace and social cohesion.

Beyond the specific project activities, the consultative meeting also highlighted the important role of local government structures in supporting inclusive and peaceful communities. Participants demonstrated a shared willingness to work more closely with youth, women, and civil society actors to address local challenges in a constructive and collaborative way. This spirit of partnership is critical for building trust, preventing conflict, and strengthening resilience in rural communities.

For Rural Smiles Foundation, the meeting marked an important milestone in the implementation of Youth Voices for Peace: Community Dialogue and Safe Participation Initiative. It reinforced the need to continue investing in dialogue, local leadership, and community-driven approaches to peacebuilding. Most importantly, it showed that when local leaders are given space to reflect, contribute, and co-create solutions, they can help shape more inclusive, practical, and sustainable pathways to peace.

Rural Smiles Foundation remains committed to working hand in hand with local leaders, young people, women, and communities to advance peaceful dialogue, inclusive participation, and resilience in rural Uganda. We believe that peace becomes stronger and more sustainable when it is built through trust, listening, and collective action from the ground up.