Clingendael Academy hosted a delegation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in March for a one-week advanced training programme with the aim of strengthening ECOWAS' mediation capacity. The program brought together resident representatives, parliament members, Mediation and Security Council members at the ambassadorial level, and technical experts. The programme utilised Clingendael's negotiation and mediation tools and simulations to enhance participants' skills. Furthermore, facilitated discussions allowed for peer exchange and experience sharing on mediation (support) challenges and good practices. The participants identified strategic recommendations to enhance existing mediation structures and bolster future mediation efforts by ECOWAS.

A participant stated: 

"The takeaways and lessons learned will be used to further strengthen our mediation and negotiation processes through: debrief with management; strengthening coordination and improving communication channels between the various organs and structures of ECOWAS."

Clingendael Academy looks back on a fruitful week and looks forward to continuing its collaboration with ECOWAS in the future.