Youth for Peace and Development (Y4PD) is a youth-led organisation formed out of the belief that there has been limited youth participation as active members in the field of peacebuilding and social change in Zimbabwe. Y4PD works primarily on two activities: advocacy for youth participation in peacebuilding and development actors in the form of training series, long term partnerships and publications. Their advocacy activities aim to shape policy and practice in peacebuilding, creating and enabling environment for young peace builders working at local, national and regional levels.
Y4PD aims to empower young people to be more effective in their endeavour to promote peace, development and democracy in their communities. Their vision is a peaceful and democratic society where young people take an active role towards cultivating a culture of peace and development. Y4PD understands peace not only as the absence of war and direct violence, but also the presence of an apparatus and conditions that favour the economic, social, physical and cultural and environmental well being of all people in a society.
The organisation's work is inspired by the United Nations' Security Council Resolution 2250 on youth, peace and security. It is dedicated to promoting internation youth related peace resolutions, such as those made through the 2015 Amann Youth Peace Declaration, which highlights a clear direction on the importance of youth participation in peacebuilding.
Their work is primarily done through long term partnerships, creation and publication of tool kits, students and youth community peace clubs, peace networks and training courses. Most advocacy work is carried out by their Peace Volunteers selected to promote peace and national development.
Youth For Peace and Development has also worked with several partners and associations from national to global level such as Youth empowerment and transformation Trust-YETT, National NonGovernmental Organisations-NANGO, National Associations of Youth Organisations-NAYO, and at global level Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict-GPPAC and United Network Of Young Peace-builders-UNOY under the Youth Peace and Security Working Group
