Tsunami Communities receive grant for Leadership Programme

Ninety young leaders and thousands of community-members in Tsunami-hit regions of Indonesia are set to benefit from a newly-awarded grant from the Big Lottery Fund.

LEAD Indonesia has been working in the Aceh region since 1992, and has delivered a range of capacity building activities during that time. In the emergency period that followed the Tsunami LEAD Indonesia, through its network, worked at the community level and also provided support to the efforts of government and emergency relief agencies operating in the region.

Effective public participation should form an essential part of any plan to rebuild the communities affected by the Tsunami. These communities face significant challenges in working with government and other agencies to ensure that the way that development happens reflects the wishes and priorities of the people who live in the region. Therefore leadership now and in the future is going to play an important role in providing a voice for all community members affected by the Tsunami.

Following community research by LEAD Indonesia, the Bridging Leadership Program (BLP) was developed to build the capacity of local young leaders to ensure that future development processes will be in the hands of responsible, democratically minded and environmentally conscious leaders.

This three-year project will identify ninety emerging young leaders in three Tsunami affected districts in the Aceh province of Indonesia and develop their leadership capacities through an innovative learning programme. Young women and men from the regions hardest hit by the Tsunami will participate in training that, over the course of one year, will equip them with the skills to inspire their communities to become active contributors to the rebuilding of Aceh.

The project will be delivered through an established partnership involving LEAD International, LEAD Indonesia and a network of local partners and stakeholders, with the generous support of the Big Lottery Fund.

Release date: Monday, March 10, 2008