The Social Economic Empowerment of Disadvantaged (SEED) Youth Project has brought together over 20 professionals from different spheres to conduct training and develop a training manual for the project.

The SEED Project is funded by the Liberia Multi Partner Trust Fund/Peacebuilding Office (LMPTF/PBO) and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Fund Population Agency (UNFPA).

Also part of the one-week Training of Trainers (TOT) held in Buchanan, was a segment of over 150 disadvantaged youth/youth at risk, who are currently benefiting from skills development training under the project engaged in plumbing, carpentry and hair dressing.

The training was facilitated by a Liberian group called Innovation for Development Actors. Its objective is to develop relevant tools that will help the disadvantaged youth understand the importance of peaceful co-existence among their colleagues and community members.

Participants were drawn from the Ministries of Youth and Sports and Health, Peace-building office, LRRRC, Monrovia and Paynesville City Corporations, Federation of Liberian Youth, and YMCA among others.

SEED seeks to contribute to sustainable peace- building and social cohesion by transforming the energy of disadvantaged youths into productive activities and influence behavioral change and reintegration into their respective communities through the community leadership structures.

This pilot project targeting Montserrado County, has also designed an integrated peace-building, reconciliation and social cohesion training intended to build capacity and counsel marginalized at-risk youth population.

One of the key components of the SEED project was the development of a harmonized peacebuilding manual and UN Peacebuilding Material to fit the needs of disadvantaged youth and provide capacity development for the targeted beneficiaries through training, coaching, mentoring, provision of access to justice and its sustainability.

The principal objective of this interventions is to build social cohesion and support sustained peace.

In furtherance to this, interaction between communities and the disadvantaged youth population across the ten selected communities in Montserrado County is to see a peaceful coexistence.