AfriPeace Unveils Peace Project in Some Communities of Plateau State

In order to achieve its objective of building and strengthening community-level structures for reconciliation and conflict recovery in Kaduna, Kano and Plateau States of Nigeria, the African Initiative for Peacebuilding and Advancement (AfriPeace) on Sunday 5th January, 2020 unveiled its peace project at a Town hall Peace advocacy meeting with Rikkos, Angwan Rukuba, Dutse Uku and Agwan Rimi Communities of Jos North LGA in Plateau State.

The project is to be implemented in plateau, Kaduna and Kano States. One common feature of these states has to do with the segregation settlement patterns along religious lines, as well as deep seated suspicion that continue to create tensions. AfriPeace will be working with existing structures across selected communities in these states to strengthen mechanisms for reconciliation and conflict recovery. The project is with the support of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA).

The meeting which held at Dutse Uku Jos, a crisis flashpoint in North LGA had in attendance traditional and religious leaders, youth and women groups. Community level security and peace structures from the mentioned communities toward sustaining the prevailing relative peace in the areas as well as the media.

Team Leader of AfriPeace, Dr. Chris Kwaja said the essence of the meeting was to look beyond the crises of indigeneship and citizenship towards building and strengthening structures for community-led reconciliation and conflict recovery in Northern Nigeria especially Kaduna, Kano and Plateau States of Nigeria which has suffered monumental violent attacks that has led to segregation settlement pattern along religious on account of fear, suspicion and distrust.

Dr. Chris Kwaja said he is interested in working with the communities to achieve peace and ensure their diversity becomes their source of strength. He maintained that members of the Communities have the power to engender peace and sustain same.

He admonished the people to come together to change the discussion to enhance unity, peaceful coexistence and harmonious living.

He said AfriPeace is ready to synergize with other actors to build bridges of peace among the people. He charged the people to be free and identify areas of common needs and join hands to work towards addressing them. He said peace starts from the heart and the people must agree to live peacefully.
He lauded women and said they have powerful voices, goodwill and network needed for peace building.

Dr. Kwaja said AfriPeace aim is to consolidate on the peace building efforts of the communities saying he has seen opportunities and potentials of working together with the communities to achieve peace.

Dr. Kwaja said the organisation is Peace building and dialogue focused.

He spoke about harmonization and synergy among existing structures to attain unity and peaceful coexistence.

Dr. Kwaja concluded by positing that Crisis is failure of the family.

Members of the communities in their separate remarks thanked Afripeace for the meeting and said having known the setback caused by violence, they have agreed to remain peaceful.

They urged Afripeace to help in fight against drug abuse as it is a trigger to violence as they observed that substance abuse and Sara suka potents great threat to peace in some areas such as Angwan Rimi, Angwan Rukuba, Dutse Uku in Jos North LGA.

Community Leaders who spoke charged parents to live up to their parental responsibilities and called for genuine reconciliation & forgiveness among the people.

They promised not to allow anything tamper with the relative peace being enjoyed and called on AfriPeace to make the advocacy visit regularly to encourage the people and proffers ways of attaining sustainable and enduring peace.