During the debate on peacekeeping operations in the Fourth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly in 1994, African countries strongly expressed the view that they could take on a more active role in solving African conflicts.

Then South African President Nelson Mandela brought this up in a meeting with former Norwegian Prime Minister, Gro Harlem Brundtland, in March 1995, and suggested that South Africa and Norway could consider some kind of cooperation in this context.

The result was the Training for Peace programme (TfP), which is based on a unique North-South-South Partnership that draws on the strengths of its three partner entities: the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD); the Institute for Security Studies (ISS); and the Norwegian Institute for International Affairs (NUPI).

The programme’s main objectives are to provide support to the AUC to enhance knowledge and understanding of the evolving conflict and security environment on the continent; and contribute to strengthening the AUC’s comprehensive range of response capacities.