Community Participation Key to Ending Insecurity in Nigeria

Chris Ngwodo, the Director General of the Office for Strategic Preparedness and Resilience (OSPRE), stated the importance of community participation in addressing insecurity during a one-day policy dialogue held in Kano on Building an Inclusive National Infrastructure for Peace and Resilience in Nigeria. Ngwodo explained that communities possess the best understanding of their challenges and that the federal government's role is to support and resource these local efforts.

The initiative aims to align grassroots peacebuilding with federal support across all states and local governments, focusing on prevention, dialogue, mediation, and coordinated responses to issues like banditry and communal violence. Prof. Nanji Umoh from the University of Jos described the policy as "bottom-up," emphasizing community input.

Sulaiman Iguda Ladan, a chief lecturer at Hassan Usman Katsina Polytechnic, warned that banditry is evolving, with younger bandits continuing due to a lack of livelihood alternatives. He stressed that without sustainable means of livelihood, banditry will persist.