Tag: Faith

The Peace We Fund: Our Rallying Call for the EU
At the launch of our Peace Conversations Initiative, we posed urgent questions to policymakers: Are we funding peace or just talking about it? Are we listening to those building peace daily or assuming we know better? Through our MEP breakfast in Strasbourg and our new publication “The Missing Piece in Peace,” we’ve documented answers from communities across Cambodia, South Sudan, DRC, Ethiopia, and Somalia. The endgame is clear: the Global Europe instrument under the Multi-Financial Framework (MFF) 2028-2034 must fund peace not as rhetoric, but as reality.

What Communities Have Taught Us

In Bor, South Sudan, Peace Committees and Promoters play a crucial role in resolving disputes over boreholes, family matters, and youth conflicts, thereby fostering community harmony. Meanwhile, in Cambodia, the SPIRIT program is making strides in helping indigenous groups address land disputes and advance gender equity through innovative conflict-sensitive tools. Ethiopian women trained through PMU’s YBCEDO program have successfully ended a seven-year village conflict that had taken over 200 lives. In Somalia’s Middle Shabelle, MEAL’s Climate-Smart Agriculture initiative is tackling resource scarcity and boosting productivity to reduce conflict. Tearfund’s JISRA program showcases the power of community-driven, faith-based peacebuilding in seven countries.

The MFF Opportunity

The 2028-2034 MFF proposal obscures peace within a €12.68 billion “global pillar” alongside human rights, democracy, civil society, and other “global challenges,” and lacks transparency on actual peacebuilding allocations. The examples shared above have common threads: local ownership, conflict sensitivity, long-term commitment, trust-building as infrastructure, and genuine community participation. The Global Europe Instrument presents an opportunity to fund conflict prevention and peacebuilding holistically—not as a sector alongside health or education, but as a cross-cutting imperative shaping how all investments are designed. Therefore, we advocate for:
- Conflict sensitivity in spending. Every euro influences peace: agricultural investments must account for land conflicts, education projects should promote social cohesion, and digital infrastructure must enhance public discourse. General programming must incorporate conflict and gender sensitivity in all actions under Global Europe, including Global Gateway projects. It should involve long-term investment that aligns with reality. Building inclusive institutions and transforming systems requires decades of commitment. Sustainable initiatives, like Bor’s Peace Committees, demonstrate the success of community-driven efforts. The Global Europe Pillar must provide predictable, multi-year funding to support such peacebuilding processes.
- Accessible funding for local peacebuilders. Emerging funding systems favour EU-based contractors over local organisations. Mechanisms should be more accessible to community groups, with affected populations setting funding priorities to deliver relevant, locally owned, and gender-transformative initiatives. Prevention over reaction.
- As a 2025 IMF report shows, investing in prevention is more cost-effective than crisis response. Peace Committees and conflict-sensitive land management help avoid disputes, while women’s economic empowerment decreases gender-based violence. It’s essential to invest upstream to reduce downstream costs.
- Recognition of interconnectedness. In our interconnected world, peace is collective. Conflicts in one region can cause migration issues elsewhere, and climate impacts transcend borders. The future Global Europe Instrument should integrate conflict prevention and peacebuilding as an effective tool for other geographic objectives, while encouraging cross-regional learning rather than reinforcing funding silos.
A Clear Call to the EU

We call on EU decision-makers to:
1. Establish transparent, dedicated peace-building allocations within Global Europe with binding targets that cannot disappear into “global challenges.”
1. Embed conflict sensitivity across all Global Europe spending through mandatory conflict analysis and Do No Harm assessments, not just crisis response.
1. Create accessible funding for local peacebuilders in EU external action, including simplified procedures, multi-year commitments, and support for community-driven monitoring.
1. Integrate peacebuilding into Global Gateway, making conflict sensitivity, local ownership, and social cohesion metrics as important as technical delivery targets.
1. Invest adequately in prevention by shifting from crisis-reactive funding toward proven interventions like Peace Committees and conflict-sensitive programming.
1. Support faith-based and women-led peacebuilding, recognising their demonstrated effectiveness and unique community authority.
1. Prioritise women and youth participation, ensuring funding mechanisms actively support their leadership rather than treating inclusion as an afterthought.
Without clear peacebuilding allocations in Global Europe, prevention remains rhetoric. The evidence is overwhelming. The budget is being negotiated now. The question is whether the EU will fund peace or just talk about it.
Tabeth Masengu

29 January 2026

Uncategorized

Faith, Funding, GlobalGateway, MFF
The Missing Piece in Peace: It starts with Us
On January 20, six EU-CORD members gathered for the second of our annual Breakfast events for Members of the European Parliament (MEPs). The full room in the early hours of the morning fostered a warm and hopeful atmosphere, aligning political, faith, and community perspectives—something much needed in our times.

The objectives of the EU-CORD Breakfast event have always been twofold:

1. To bring together politicians across the spectrum of political standing and engage them in a dialogue that would not otherwise be possible.

2. To utilise our Christian values to provide hope and reflection while ensuring that the voices of affected communities are clearly heard in the EU arena.

This event, co-hosted by MEP Hildegard Bentele, the Development Committee Rapporteur on the Global Gateway, saw the return of four MEPs from our first event, along with nine new attendees from various political groups and countries. This time, our focus was on whether the EU’s Global Gateway can successfully translate the Sustainable Development Goals into mutually beneficial partnerships that can deliver results even in regions experiencing high levels of conflict-related mortality.

Our emphasis was on peace because global peace has continued to decline, with conflict resolution at its lowest in 50 years. Yet, the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) process forecasts deep budget cuts to peace-building efforts while increasing defence and armament budgets.

Our speaker, Ephrem Shiferaw, the Regional Strategic Advisor for East Africa at Woord en Daad, has witnessed the effects of war in Tigray and understands how infrastructure can either promote peace or catalyse conflict. In his speech in Strasbourg, he made several important points:
- Development does not begin with money, but with trust.
- Recovery is necessary after conflict, but it requires more than just infrastructure.
- The EU Global Gateway projects can serve as both investment and development initiatives if they:
1. Embed conflict sensitivity and peacebuilding into every project
2. Mandate the involvement of local communities, civil society organisations, and regional actors in project design and oversight,
3. Ensure transparency and accountability at every level,
4. Align all European-supported initiatives rigorously with national priorities and remain responsive to shifting contexts.
Rina Molenaar, CEO of Woord en Daad, who attended, stated,

Without local involvement, alignment quickly becomes just a phrase. With local ownership, it can become a lever for peace, dignity, and future prospects.
Rina Molenaar

The discussion following Mr Shiferaw’s input recognised the challenges that the Gateway projects face and highlighted the importance of civil society organisations. Emphasis was placed on the need to acknowledge partner country needs to avoid a top-down EU approach, while ensuring that administrative burdens do not hinder vital progress when partner countries request assistance.

The great turnout, lively interactions, and the MEPs’ appreciation of the event confirmed what we have always believed:
- Dialogue across all political parties is not only preferred; it is necessary.
- Faith-based actors play a critical role in building bridges among different political figures.
- The voices of affected communities in EU partner countries are vital and can enrich EU decision-making.
As members of EU-CORD, we should be inspired by the success of this political event and fuelled to ensure our voices are heard. However, it should also prompt us to reflect on the questions I posed to the MEPs on that early Tuesday morning in my devotional: In your sphere of influence today, will you be a peace initiator? Will you act with integrity, regardless of how others respond? Will you extend the work of reconciliation as far as your reach allows.

In Romans 12:18, Paul states, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” We all have a daily choice to pursue peace. As we advocate for investment in peacebuilding, let us also commit to living in peace ourselves, as far as it depends on us.
Tabeth Masengu

26 January 2026

Advocacy Hub

church, Faith, peace
How can we work more meaningfully with Organisations of People with Disabilities?

SeeYou Foundation asked one question to all its local development partners in the Global South, namely: “How can we work more meaningfully with OPDs?” The responses uncovered insights that are valuable not only for organisations specializing in disability inclusion but for anyone committed to sustainable development. In this article, we share some of the key takeaways of our journey of self-reflection.

About OPDs

Organisations of persons with disabilities, or shortened OPDs, are representative organisations led by and for persons with disabilities. They give a voice to their communities, advocate for their rights, and ensure that policies, programs, and initiatives address real needs. By working directly with OPDs, policymakers and project teams can make sure that interventions are not only relevant, but also welcomed and supported by persons with disabilities and their families. As an organisation dedicated to disability-inclusive development, SeeYou Foundation works with OPDs across all of its projects—sometimes as direct partners, and other times as stakeholders.

Why it matters

Before diving into our key takeaways, it’s worth stepping back to consider two reasons why meaningful engagement matters. First, persons with disabilities represent one of the largest marginalized groups worldwide. Engaging with the organisations that represent them is not only logical, but absolutely necessary to help communities thrive.

The second reason is that many development actors—including INGOs, international agencies, and even national NGOs—too often make decisions from a position of power.

“Engagement can sometimes feel like a “box-ticking exercise” rather than a genuine conversation.”
Micha Schutten Business Development Manager at SeeYou Foundation

If we are serious about sustainable development, it is important to stop seeing OPDs as mere beneficiaries and instead recognize them as equal partners.

Our key takeaways

1) Give it time: Our partners emphasized that discussions around complex and sensitive issues cannot be rushed. Too often, we (in the North) spent a lot of time on our own thinking process and then expected ready-made answers from our partners in the first engagement, which then leads to hurried decisions. Meaningful engagement requires giving everyone at the table enough time to reflect.

2) Include multiple voices: Our partners stressed that they prefer multiple voices at the table. We should not be afraid to bring different organizations into one conversation because it enriches discussions and often leads to better recommendations. At the same time, it’s important to understand the strengths and capacities of different OPDs to ensure that the right organizations are involved at the right time.

3) Communicate directly: Our partners stressed the importance of speaking for themselves, rather than relying on intermediaries to convey their perspectives. They prefer direct lines of communication, even alongside existing hierarchies. While communication and cultural barriers were still acknowledged, direct communication provide them with assurance that their voices are truly heard and considered.

4) Shift your perspective: As already mentioned, our partners continue to challenge us to move beyond viewing them as mere recipients of aid contained in one project but instead recognize them as equal partners in community development. Strengthening OPDs, as active members forming the fabric of civil society, is in itself a contribution to community development.

5) Participation over immediate solutions: Last but not least, our partners indicate that despite our best intentions, we sometimes try to “do too much,” while OPDs simply want to participate and challenge misperceptions and stigma about people with disabilities. Therefore engagement should focus on empowerment, rather than only addressing immediate needs. This requires flexibility and funding to support the capacity of their organizations.

Wat we will do next

In the our new strategy, SeeYou will increase direct, unrestricted funding to OPDs across all projects. Direct grants will be provided to different OPDs, for example village disability groups, youth disability networks, women with disabilities’ collectives, and organisations representing specific disability communities, such as associations for people who are blind, deaf, or have other disabilities. We will allow them to communicate with us in the formats that work best for them—whether through videos, journals, online presentations, or other methods. An in addition to building their organizational capacity, we will invite OPDs to share their knowledge among themselves and with other partners. This way we will ensure that people with disabilities remain at center of our all our projects.

About SeeYou Foundation

For more than 40 years, Seeyou is dedicated to empowering individuals with disabilities and promoting their inclusion, resulting in life-changing transformations for both individuals and communities. By providing support, advocating for rights, and collaborating with others, the foundation serves as a catalyst for positive change, fostering a society that values and respects individuals with disabilities.

SeeYou is a full member of the EU-Cord network, more information on the organisation can be found on their website: https://www.seeyoufoundation.nl/about-seeyou/

Witten by Micha Schutten Business Development Manager at SeeYou Foundation

Tabeth Masengu

18 September 2025

Advocacy Hub

disability inclusion, Faith, justice
Faith, Climate, and Environment: Exploring the Living Planet Monitor
More than 180 people registered for our recent Faith, Climate and Environment webinar, co-hosted with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and PaRD. The session marked an important step in our collective journey: exploring the Living Planet Monitor (LPM), a WCC tool that documents how churches and faith-based organisations (FBOs) are advancing ecological and environmental justice.

The Living Planet Monitor

The LPM tracks commitments in areas such as land, water, food systems, biodiversity, and climate resilience. Alongside monitoring indicators, it also lifts up stories of hope, showing how FBOs act as resilient communities in the face of the climate emergency.

The first volume highlights initiatives from Southern and Eastern Africa, with further African regions to follow later this year and an Asia edition planned for early 2026. Data is collected regionally, and in the future partners may also contribute directly to strengthening the monitoring and updating process.

In keynote presentations, Dinesh Suna and Maike Gorsboth (WCC) highlighted the concrete contributions of churches to ecological and environmental justice,

“The Living Planet Monitor is not just data. It is a testimony of faith in action, showing what churches are already doing and how we can learn from each other.“

Dinesh Suna, WCC Programme Executive for Water, Land, and Food Advocacy

Athena Peralta, Director of the WCC Climate Justice Commission, introduced the Ecumenical Decade of Climate Justice (2025–2034), a call to mobilise global church action in response to the climate emergency:

“This decade is about living our faith with integrity in the face of climate crisis. From divesting church finances from harmful investments, to linking congregations with scientists, to training climate chaplains. Faith in action means leading by example.”
Athena Peralta, Director of the WCC Climate Justice Commission

Breakout discussions gave participants the chance to connect the findings of the LPM with their own work. Commitments emerging from the groups included:
- Sharing the LPM with colleagues and integrating its lessons into ongoing programmes
- Raising awareness of environmental stewardship within their networks
- Contributing stories of hope to future LPM editions
- Exploring solutions to reduce fossil fuel dependency, microplastic pollution and biodiversity loss
As Maike Gorsboth reflected, the LPM’s regional structure makes it possible to link local realities with global patterns. This perspective enables churches to respond to immediate community needs while engaging systemic challenges.

What’s Next
- Join the third Faith, Climate and Environment webinar on 10 December 2025, featuring a COP30 debrief by Dinesh Suna
- Download the soft copy of the LPM here
- Contribute to the upcoming Asia volume by sharing your organisation’s stories on land management, water conservation or food security. Contact the WCC team at infowcc@wcc-coe.org
Written by Ama Armoo
Ruth Faber

11 September 2025

Faith in Action, Learning Space

church, climate, environment, Faith, justice, Stromme, webinar
What drives our vision for Europe?

Ruth Faber reflects on a ‘vision for Europe’ shared with MEPs at a recent EU-CORD breakfast event in Strasbourg.

As elected representatives, you are uniquely positioned to shape policies that will guide our collective future. This morning, we step back to consider the kind of Europe we want to create as our legacy.

We gather at a time of profound challenges marked by geopolitical tensions, climate emergencies, and economic instability. These overlapping crises require leadership rooted not in fear but in courage, compassion, and vision.

Like many, I feel the pull of a “fear response.” Yet, as a Christian, I draw strength from the reflection that “perfect love drives out fear” (1 John 4:18).

This perfect love should guide our collective work—a love demonstrated in solidarity with the poor, welcoming the stranger, caring for creation, and unwavering advocacy for justice and equality.

This guiding principle aligns with the EU’s founding treaties, which placed poverty reduction and, ultimately, its eradication at the heart of the EU’s development policy and international cooperation efforts.

Within the Christian tradition, we are called to engage in acts of service and embrace a prophetic calling to transform systems for justice. This is about far more than addressing symptoms; it is about creating a new reality where solidarity with the poor and inclusion of the marginalised underpin every decision.

Pivotal Choices

As Members of the European Parliament, you face pivotal choices in shaping policies that deeply affect relief, development, and the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Over 1.1 billion people live in acute poverty, with over half—584 million—being children under 18. Additionally, 1.8 billion people live in fragile states, and over 3 billion are in areas highly vulnerable to climate change,

The question is whether we will build a Europe defined by love, solidarity, and justice—or one constrained by self-interest, eroding our shared humanity and leaving many behind?

From my perspective, the policy direction emerging from EU policymakers often reflects a selective form of compassion that privileges some while marginalising others. Narrowing participation to immediate interests, sidelining civil society, and failing to uphold democratic values and human rights will inevitably limit the EU’s transformative potential.

Later this morning, we want to get a sense of your agenda—here’s what’s on ours.

The Defining Role of the Multi-Annual Financial Framework

The Multi-Annual Financial Framework (MFF) represents a defining test of Europe’s commitment to its stated values.

As Members of the European Parliament, you determine the priorities that will guide the EU’s future and signal how seriously Europe takes global solidarity.

We are concerned by the deprioritisation of people-centred approaches, significant reductions in funding allocations, the dominance of the Global Gateway, and emerging proposals that place humanitarian aid and development under a single regulation.

This consolidation could blur the lines between official development assistance (ODA), humanitarian aid, and security-related funding, weakening the focus on poverty reduction and weakening the EU’s long-held commitment to principled humanitarian action.

There is the risk of instrumentalising ODA, whereby ODA is channelled primarily toward migration management, security, or economic objectives that serve Europe’s own priorities rather than addressing genuine development needs in partner countries.

Another challenge is the growing emphasis on blended finance and private-sector instruments. While combining public resources with private investments can spur innovation, it does not always guarantee real development gains, especially in low-income or fragile contexts. In some cases, it may even lead to additional debt burdens for partner countries, contradicting the principle of sustainable development.

In light of these challenges, we urge you to use your legislative power to ensure that policies and funding embody genuine solidarity, enabling the most vulnerable communities—particularly those most affected by climate change and inequality—to flourish. Europe’s aspiration to become a “reference donor” can only be realised through mutual respect, equity, and sincere partnership.

Fragile States and Resilient Communities

EU-CORD also raises awareness on how to work effectively in fragile contexts and politically estranged states where weak governance, conflict, and climate crises converge, eroding the social contract between governments and citizens.

Here, faith-based organisations (FBOs) can play an essential role in fostering trust and sustaining social cohesion and we will continue to work with ActAlliance EU, Caritas Europa, and Islamic Relief to share this message.

In a recent roundtable, we heard from local and national faith-based organisations (FBOs) that operate with deep community roots, often where state institutions are weak or absent.

Their long-term presence and faith-based identity help them build credibility, reach marginalised communities, and fill critical gaps in humanitarian access. Whether establishing local peace committees, brokering trust between communities and government authorities, or integrating development and livelihood support with emergency response, FBOs can help make the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) Nexus a reality on the ground.

Yet, FBOs in fragile states face significant challenges. Funding for local actors is often short-term and unpredictable, limiting their ability to address root causes of conflict while also responding to urgent needs. Despite official recognition of FBOs’ importance, institutional barriers—including within the EU—hinder effective collaboration. Donors and policymakers must commit to more flexible, integrated approaches to sustain longer-term programming.

This means supporting immediate humanitarian relief and peacebuilding efforts, backed by reliable funding instruments that promote the genuine inclusion of local voices.

EU-CORD advocates for such long-term funding to rebuild trust, strengthen institutions, and empower local initiatives that promote justice and peace. In fragile contexts, shifting toward multi-year, flexible funding and structured partnerships with FBOs can create a stable foundation to address urgent crises and the systemic drivers of instability.

Civil Society: Building Systems for Justice

A vibrant civil society is the cornerstone of a fair and inclusive Europe. Civil society organisations defend human rights, ensure accountability, and champion community-driven development. Yet, these vital spaces face growing threats worldwide, including within Europe.

For EU-CORD, protecting civil society is not only about supporting partners abroad—it is also about safeguarding the democratic mandate at home. When civil society is sidelined, democracy weakens, and the voices of the most vulnerable are silenced. As a faith-based network, we view civil society as essential for systemic transformation, meaningful engagement and civil society space will be key themes for us on the coming years.

Grounding Policies in Human Impact

In our interconnected world, policy decisions have very real consequences for people’s lives.

In 2025, EU-CORD and other faith-based organisations will investigate how Europe’s push for critical raw materials is negatively affecting communities, with an initial focus on Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Today, we have the privilege of hearing from Alexandre Bitenga, a research consultant and PhD candidate at the University of Leuven, whose findings illuminate how Europe’s choices directly impact vulnerable populations—and remind us of the urgent need to shape policies anchored in justice and solidarity.

This work underscores our collective responsibility to uphold the principle of “leave no one behind,” which, for EU-CORD, includes particular emphasis on the inclusion of persons with disabilities. We are members of the International Disability and Development Consortium and look forward to a successful Global Disability Summit in Germany in the coming months.

A Vision Realised

As we look ahead, Europe’s path will be shaped by choices that require leadership grounded in love rather than fear. By anchoring our policies and actions in this principle, we can create a future where no one is left behind and justice is more than a lofty ideal.

Let us choose to rise to this challenge. Let us resist the forces that diminish our common humanity and affirm policies that reflect our highest values. Together—policymakers, civil society, and faith-based organisations—we can shape a Europe that embodies perfect love for all.

Ruth Faber

24 January 2025

Uncategorized

Faith
Toolkit: Engaging with Religious Leaders and Faith Communities

EU-CORD, ACT Alliance EU, Caritas Europa and Islamic Relief Worldwide have collaborated on a practical toolkit designed to give European Union (EU) decision-makers and civil society actors concrete suggestions for more systematic engagement with local religious leaders and faith communities in humanitarian response, development and peacebuilding actions.

Increasingly, we recognise the centrality of working in partnership to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. This includes the need to engage with those who can help us to understand religious dynamics in countries where faith and belief inform a worldview that shapes laws, customs and practices.

This toolkit is just a start, and we look forward to taking the conversation and the toolkit forward with interested parties.

View and download

Ruth Faber

15 March 2021

Faith in Action

Faith

The Peace We Fund: Our Rallying Call for the EU

The Missing Piece in Peace: It starts with Us

How can we work more meaningfully with Organisations of People with Disabilities?

Faith, Climate, and Environment: Exploring the Living Planet Monitor

What drives our vision for Europe?

Toolkit: Engaging with Religious Leaders and Faith Communities