On May 20, Leaders for Peace presented the Smart Peace Prize, an award for peace education in early childhood, to the Congolese organization Action Kivu. The ceremony took place at the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, in the presence of Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, Jean-Pierre Raffarin, honorary president of Leaders for Peace, and Donia Kaouach, president of Leaders for Peace.
The winner: Action Kivu
The 2024–2025 award was presented to the founding president of Action Kivu, Mr. Tom Amani Matabaro, under the exceptional patronage of Prince Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, president of the International Peace Institute, and Mr. Jean Todt, Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for Road Safety.
Action Kivu was founded in 2006 by Mr. Amani Matabaro in North Kivu, a province in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The original project focused on women’s empowerment and female entrepreneurship by helping survivors of sexual violence start their own businesses. With a view to expanding the association’s activities, peace education has emerged as an indispensable factor in the socio-economic development and pacification of the DRC. Following a partnership with the Dillon Henry Foundation, construction of the Congo Peace Schools was completed in 2018. These Peace Schools, established from preschool through middle school, teach the Congolese national curriculum for primary education (reading, mathematics, science, etc.) as well as a joint program on nonviolence tailored to each age group. The Congo Peace Schools educate 560 children annually—including war orphans and vulnerable children—on nonviolence, peace, and peaceful leadership.
The award presented to Mr. Matabaro in recognition of his commitment to peace education and conflict prevention was designed and created by Iranian-born sculptor Myriam Agout. Art, like education, is a means of raising awareness and learning about peace.
Watch the highlights of the ceremony here:
