In February 2025, HAMRAH and the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) convened a two-day intensive dialogue in Barcelona, Spain, in February to bring together Afghan and Syrian civil society leaders to exchange experiences and strategies for navigating political transitions and operating under sanctions. 

Participants explored strategies for fostering inclusive governance, identifying points of cooperation with emerging power brokers, engaging effectively with national, regional and international actors to influence policy discussions, building alliances, strengthening coordination  and diversifying funding sources.

Afghan participants shared lessons from the early post-2001 period, when civil society in Afghanistan played a pivotal technical role in shaping legal and institutional frameworks through  technical support such as capacity-building, developing governance frameworks, legal clinics, and supporting local councils and other community-driven initiatives as footholds for broader civic engagement. 

Activists from both countries discussed how sanctions, limited funding, and political constraints can undermine organisational sustainability and program impact and exchanged approaches to building alliances and partnerships to diversify funding streams including among diasporas.