Nyere Centre for Peace Research
The East African Community (EAC) Nyerere Centre for Peace Research (NCPR) was established in 2007 to develop as a Centre of Excellence in capacity building and research.
The commitment is enshrined in Article 6 of the EACTreaty that lays emphasis on peaceful co-existence and good neighborliness, peaceful settlement of disputes, mutual trust, good governance and democracy. Further Article 124 of the EAC Treaty underscores peace and security as pre-requisites to social and economic development within the Community and vital to the achievement of the objectives of the Community.
The work of the Centre complements the provisions of the Treaty that peace and security are prerequisites for regional integration and therefore the need to build capacities in order to secure an environment that is stable and peaceful for enhanced human security, regional development and prosperity.
The Centre is situated at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha-Tanzania. The Centre embraces Tanzania’s late President Nyerere’s vision of a prosperous East Africa built on tenets of peace, freedom and democratic transformation and as such, it provides a resource Centre where East Africans can meet to discuss relevant issues, share information and effect peaceful change for an integrated East Africa
The purpose of the Centre is to provide the EAC Policy process with timely, relevant and empirical research information as well as capacity-building training that enhances peace and security, political affairs and international relations towards EAC integration. Nyerere Centre for Peace Research is meant to;
- Establish a unique interface between policy makers and regional and national opinion leaders. The Centre offers a platform where East African leaders, the media, academics and will interact on a regular basis while discussing thematic issues of regional importance.
- Consolidate strategic expertise and safeguard the Community’s common values - Through seminars, publications and workshops, there is mustering and engaging local, regional and international experts on diverse range of themes, topics relevant to the integration process. This concentration of expert opinion is invaluable to the EAC Secretariat, organs and institutions of the Community and help to nurture and safeguard the common values and fundamental interests of the Community.
- Provide a forum for informal discussion that impact on the integration process the Centre being neither a negotiating nor a decision-making body, will provide a forum where different points of view are freely aired in a forum that includes non-official EAC partners.
- Enable the EAC with policy focused think tank - The Centre plays an essential role in the development of EAC concepts, strategies, policies and programs in the area of peace and security, Youth, Gender, leadership, political Affairs and international relations.
- Disseminate crucial public information on the EAC integration process - The Centre develops publications based upon policy research as an ideal medium for communicating in-depth with broad EAC and international audiences. The Centre aims at developing qualitative communication strategy, which reinforces interface between policy decisions and wider public actors (both State and Non-State Actors) and other stakeholders in the areas of peace & security, Leadership, Governance, Gender, Youth, international relations and political affairs.