Kyrgyzstan

Programmes: Sport and Arts For Peace for Children

Generations For Peace has been active in Kyrgyzstan since 2013, with programmes focused both in the northeast near the borders of Kazakhstan and China and in the southwest Batken region. Using Sport For Peace Programmes for Children and Youth as well as Arts For Peace Programmes in the towns of Karakol, Osh, and Isfana, Generations For Peace promotes peace where there is often ethnic conflict.

GFP’s programmes in Kyrgyzstan have been tailored to address a range of issues, from racketeering in the northwest to ethnic conflict in Batken region. In Karakol, the country’s fourth-largest city, where students aged 14-17 are heavily involved in organised crime, GFP has engaged them through sport-based activities to counter these tendencies and promote peace. Meanwhile, in the southwest near the border of Uzbekistan, Kyrgyz and Uzbek children and youth face ethnic conflict that often escalates to violence. GFP programmes here have provided a way for youth from both backgrounds to engage with one another and create meaningful friendships that overcome conflict.