IPCR, Others Insist All Hands Must Be On Deck to Minimise Conflicts in Nigeria

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) and other stakeholders in peace advocacy in Nigeria, have said all hands must be on deck to minimise conflicts in Nigeria.

The stakeholders made the submission yesterday  in Abuja during a two-day stakeholders’ training in early warning response group (EWRG) to conflict resolution.

They said: “To minimise conflicts in our society, all hands must be on deck.”

While talking at the workshop, Deputy Director, Research, National Conflict Early Warning and Early Response, who also doubles as coordinator partner of the project, Mr Steve Agbo said: “The essence of this project, is to enhance early warning, early response system in Nigeria to achieve sustainable peace in the country through conflict prevention, and to do that, the Institute as a peace promotion agency in Nigeria has carried out a research that indicated that lack of response is a major factor inhibiting the effectiveness of conflict early warning system in Nigeria, and has also a rollover effect on why Nigeria is having myriad of conflict across the country.”

He added that: “There is a need to establish this group that we are training today, the group called Early Warning response group is a mixture of security and non security response personnel from various agencies.” 

“We started the group in 2003 and today we have the group established at the state level in the nine selected states in Nigeria, that’s Benue, Nasarawa Plateau, Kaduna, Katsina and Kano”.

One of the participants at the training, a Chief Superintendent in Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), Mr Oguntayo Olayinka said: “The training has helped  us to learn about the model on how to handle the conflict, which we were taught on how we can understand the interest indicator, the what that involved before you start the solution. So when you understand the needs and the interest of the individual, as stakeholders, you will be able to analyse the conflict, very well, and to provide the next solution to it.”

The workshop had in attendance top-level security stakeholder representatives from the Directorate of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), National Emergency Management Agency(NEMA), The Nigeria Police (NPF), representatives from Ministry Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

Moving forward, the training is expected to reach it targeted goal and formulate comprehensive approach that addresses the root causes of conflicts while fostering cooperation and trust among all stakeholders.

IPCR in partnership with Peace Action for Rapid and Transformative Nigeria Early Response (PARTNER) together with United States Agency for international Development (USAID) organised the workshop.

Agbo said: As highlighted in the UN-World Bank report Pathways for Peace: Inclusive Approaches to Preventing Violent Conflict, the number of violent conflicts has increased since 2010, thus raising the question of how violence and its escalation can be prevented. Conflict prevention mechanisms exist. And that is what is called, Early Warning and Response Systems (EWRS). Hence, the need for training to update those who are the key stakeholders involved in tackling the issue of conflict resolution using the modern technique and approach.