NGO Trains 50 On Peace Building In Kaduna

NGO Trains 50 On Peace Building In Kaduna

http://www.newsportng.com.ng International Alert, (IA) with funding from United Kingdom Aid, in partnership with Global Peace Development, (GPD) has trained 50 persons on conflict management and prevention, in Kaduna state.

The two-day “Gendered Mediation and Community Reconciliation Training For Community/Religious Leaders and Dialogue Facilitators,” holds Monday 28th and Tuesday 29th August, respectively in a view to brooker peace among residents of Kaduna state irrespective of tribe, religion, gender and other differences.

Giving an overview of the program, the Gender Equity and Social Inclusive Officer, (GESI) International Alert, Fatima Inusa, said the facilitators are people in communities, stakeholders, Youth, Women and Religious leaders who were chosen to manage conflict and also gather skills for conflict management and prevention.

She said that they will also have dialogues at the course of the program, while noting that people who are part of the workshop are people who came from communities that have been affected by conflicts adding that the program will enhance local dispute resolution processes.

Speaking with Journalists shortly after the event, one of the stakeholders from Sexual Assault Referral Center, Kafanchan, Mrs. Grace Yohanna, said the training will serve as an eye opener for participants, stressing that the networking is going to help reduce conflict to the barest minimum on the ground that facilitators from different world of fields and experiences are present to take the people throughout the program.

NGO Trains 50 On Peace Building In Kaduna
She disclosed that from their experiences, the idea is to develop the best approach on how to prevent assaults being it on the path of women, children, boys and girls from happening and not to even manage it because managing it is always difficult on the ground that they go through a lot of difficulties.

Grace said, “we are talking of how we can prevent and not to even manage it but to us from our experiences, it is always difficult because along the line you have a lot of difficulties that we could not even get justice for our survivor and they becomes victim and even victim for life if care is not taken.

“So with this training, I believe the networking is going to help us and I see people from different world of fields of experience. So meaning it’s everybody’s business to say zero tolerance to any forms of violence so our coming together is going to help us. It has a lot of impact that you do not need to know somebody before you help him get justice once violence occur.

“We have report of assault on the male counterparts too. It’s just that women and children are mostly vulnerable in our society. It’s not as if men are not being assaulted. We have ten percent of men that have been assaulted against 90-percent women and children being assaulted. We have recorded a lot of assaults. In my center we have recorded 3108 cases as at July 2023 from inception 2019, when the center was opened.” She said.

Hadiza Ahmadu, who is a participant in the program from Dangoma Community in Jema’a LGA, Kaduna state said the program is highly educative and impactful.

She noted that the lessons learnt will be communicated down to the grassroot including Islamic schools so they can know that peace building in every community is a collective effort.

In the same vein, the representative of the Divisional Police Officer, (DPO) Chikun Local Government Area, Inspector Constance Didia, said the program has done a lot in restoring peace and harmony especially in the area of collaboration.

Didia reiterated that initially, people thinks the security personnels can do it alone but by the reason of the program many of them has come to know that no particular stone can stand on its own.

She said, the major causes of violence conflict in Chikun Local Government Area, are land dispute, unemployment, drug abuse, shop looting among others.

Didia said, “to achieve peace and harmony in the community, you must work with everybody. This issue on ground, police personnels are the facilitators. Some time ago our CP was visiting churches to bring to the knowledge of people that peace can be achieved through collaboration. In Chikun Local Government to be precise, the level of conflict and crime has drastically reduced through this medium of collaboration with the civil society.

“In Chikun, the major causes are land dispute, unemployment drug abuse, shop looting among others are the causes. she added.