As the threats of violent extremism become more diffused, impacting economies and societies globally, there is a greater need for an effective response to address it holistically. The articles in this issue discuss the significance of rehabilitation programmes in the context of countering violent extremism (CVE) and provide an overview of rehabilitation efforts in various regional contexts, including in Europe, South Asia and Africa.

In light of growing concerns about the risks of radical extremist ideology in the European context, Marcin Styszynski argues that countries in the region need to rethink their rehabilitation programmes by taking lessons from some of the Arab countries that have dealt with the threat with varying degrees of success. Additionally, these measures and initiatives need to be contextualised, given the differences in scale and nature of the threat of jihadism, terrorism and radicalisation in the concerned countries in Europe.

Abdul Basit explores Pakistan’s militant rehabilitation programme in the context of its efficacy and limitations. He observes that, unless there is an overarching counter-radicalisation strategy to supplement the de-radicalisation and militant rehabilitation efforts of detainees, Pakistan’s fight against terrorism and extremism will not be completely effective.

Jane Ekayu considers the plight of the former child soldiers in Northern Uganda following the end of the civil war involving the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government. In her article, she discusses how peacebuilding initiatives by non-governmental organisations like the Children of Peace Uganda play an important role at the community level to minimise the risk of violent extremism.