Engaging Civil Society Actors in the Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Violent Extremist Offenders and Returning Foreign Terrorist Fighters

The Global Center on Cooperative Security (GCCS), in conjunction with the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The Hague (ICCT) and several sub-regional partners have been collaborating on a 2-2.5 year initiative aimed at strengthening the networks, capacity and readiness of CSOs and community leaders to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of terrorism offenders and returning foreign terrorist fighters focusing on Sahel, East Africa and Southeast Asia. This initiative is directed at Violent Extremist Offenders (VEOs), Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTFs), juvenile offenders, abductees, vigilantes, victims, (International Displaced Persons (IDPs), women, children born and families. The program focuses on socialization processes and sensitizing communities on how to overcome fears, suspicions and resentment. As a psycho-social care solution, the program intends to offer multi-month counseling course and train lay counselors, peace coaches, and religious leaders to offer assistance. To provide better access to legal aid, the program plans to use of SMS platforms to expand access to legal information and consolidate and simplify it on online platform. It aims at financial empowerment by engaging private sector in rehabilitation and reintegration efforts and providing women with job with necessary skills for jobs.