The Government of Anambra State in partnership with the Office for Strategic Preparedness and Resilience (OSPRE), the West African Network for Peace-building (WANEP), and the Wellspring Philanthropic Fund, have organised a 2-day technical workshop for the Southeast zone, themed: “Sustainable Peace, Inclusive Recovery and Durable Security,” in Awka, the state capital.
Declaring the workshop open, the Governor of Anambra state, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Gilbert Onyekachukwu Ibezim, emphasised the importance of collaboration and engagement with all critical stakeholders, including the government, traditional rulers, security agencies, and academics.
He also highlighted the need to address the root causes of conflict and the importance of dialogue and reconciliation. He commended the efforts of OSPRE in promoting peace and urged all stakeholders to continue their efforts toward resolving the challenges in the Southeast region.
On his part, the Director General, Office for Strategic Preparedness & Resilience (National Early Warning Centre of Nigeria), Mr Chris Ngwodo, noted that the occasion brought together key leadership actors from the region to deliberate on interventions designed to promote sustainable peace, inclusive recovery and durable security.
“In recent years, the South-east zone has been plagued by the activities of violent criminal gangs and a secessionist insurgency. Attacks on police officers, the military, and other security institutions across the region have heightened a climate of insecurity.
“The Concord initiative is an indicator of multidimensional peace-building measures, and the South East workshop will serve as an inception dialogue for consensus building among key stakeholders stemming from which critical programmatic interventions will be deployed in the zone.
“By emphasizing dialogue, justice delivery, collaboration, economic empowerment, and community engagement, this initiative seeks to address local resentments, agitation, and youth restiveness, thereby fostering a conducive environment for growth and prosperity,” Ngwodo added.
Speaking virtually, the Chairman of Anambra State Truth, Justice and Peace Commission, Professor Chidi Odinkalu, underscored the importance of peace in nation-building and development.
He expressed appreciation for the initiative, while highlighting the importance of acknowledging the economic effects of insecurity on the people of the region and called for a sustained effort to address the situation in the Southeast which he described as ‘complex’.
The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Honourable Benjamin Okezie Kalu, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Public Affairs, Mr. Sam Hart, expressed his commitment to collaborating with OSPRE to advance the cause of peace in the zone.
He commended OSPRE for the initiative and noted its many areas of convergence with Peace in the South-East Project (PISE-P), recently flagged off by his office.
Contributing, the Deputy National President, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Afam Okeke-Ogene and the representative of National Hunan Rights Commission, Mrs Uche Nwokocha, stressed the needs for the government at all levels to stop supporting electoral malpractices, promote good governance and treat all citizens equally at all times.
On their parts, the National President, Anambra State Association of Town Unions (ASATU), Chief Titus Akpudo and Mr Okechukwu Nwaguma of Rule of Law and Accountability Centre (RULAAC), reiterated that insecurity could be addressed through collaborative efforts with all stakeholders, sustained dialogue and reorientation.
Meanwhile, the stakeholders who participated in the 2 days concord identified loss of some core Igbo values as remote causes of insecurity in the region.
The participants drawn from the five States in the South East geopolitical zone, included traditional rulers, community leaders, leadership of religious institutions, law enforcement agents, heads of government and nongovernmental organisations, political leaders and educationists.
