A good start to ending conflict can be as straightforward as getting people talking, even in the world’s most troubled countries like Rwanda, where Oxfam works to help build trust and good relations between communities in conflict.

In the northern, southern and eastern provinces of Rwanda, Oxfam Unwrapped has funded programmes that help genocide survivors, released prisoners, migrants, and natives to associate and work together to rebuild their communities. The projects involved communities sharing resources, raising livestock together and attending community meetings facilitated by people trained in non-violent peace building and conflict resolution. Activities included building shared sheds for livestock, buying and selling livestock and animal fodder in the local market, lending and borrowing tools from each other and holding regular meetings.

Habumuremyi Uzziel's story

Habumuremyi Uzziel is from Kamate. As part of the peace-building programme, Oxfam organised meetings in his village for people to discuss their problems. The meetings were facilitated by people trained in conflict resolution and they helped solve problems, and foresee and prevent future difficulties.

For example, in Habumuremyi's village there was tension between people who owned cows and people who did not. Water is scarce, especially in the dry season, and those without cows thought those with were taking too much water. In addition, some people who owned cows were letting them feed on other people's crops. Community meetings helped develop tolerance between the two groups. Now letting cows feed on other villagers' crops is prohibited, and people share water resources more amicably. Habumuremyi said the project "had helped to open his eyes."