Organisation says sustainable peace requires justice, inclusive governance, youth empowerment and stronger grassroots action as communities grapple with violence.
By Bunmi Yekini
The images have become grimly familiar: schoolchildren abducted from classrooms, villages emptied by armed attacks, farmers abandoning their fields, families displaced by violence and communities struggling to recover from trauma.
Against this backdrop, peace advocates, security officials, religious leaders and civil society actors gathered in Abuja on Thursday with a message that was both urgent and sobering: Nigeria cannot defeat insecurity through military operations alone.
At the 2026 Annual Peace Alive Conference organised by the Peace and Positive Living Awareness Centre (PEPOLAC) to commemorate World Peace Day, participants argued that sustainable peace must be deliberately built through education, justice, inclusive governance and stronger community engagement.
The conference, which also marked PEPOLAC’s 10th anniversary, brought together policymakers, diplomats, traditional rulers, security experts, religious leaders, youth organisations and development partners under the theme, “Keeping Peace Alive for Global Peace: Advancing Peace, Unity and Sustainable Development in Communities.”
Nigeria’s security challenges have evolved beyond isolated incidents of violence.
Communities across different regions continue to contend with terrorism, insurgency, kidnapping, communal clashes, banditry, farmer-herder conflicts, cultism, cybercrime and human trafficking.
Participants noted that these threats are increasingly interconnected with deeper socio-economic problems including unemployment, poverty, poor governance, inequality and social exclusion.
According to the conference communiqué, signed by the International President of PEPOLAC, Bishop Festus Ozoemena, he described peace as the indispensable foundation upon which development, economic prosperity and social cohesion depend.
The conference warned that worsening insecurity has contributed to humanitarian crises, displacement of communities, declining investor confidence and growing public distrust in institutions responsible for maintaining law and order.
Delegates also highlighted emerging threats including climate change, environmental degradation and competition over natural resources, warning that these factors increasingly fuel communal conflicts across Nigeria.
“How did we get here?”
For Ozoemena, the scale of violence confronting Nigeria raises profound moral questions.
“There is no better time to talk about peace than now,” he said in an interview after the conference.
Looking visibly troubled by the country’s security situation, he questioned how violence had become so commonplace.
“How did we get here? Who did this to us?” he asked.
He lamented the increasing brutality of criminal violence, citing incidents of kidnappings, killings and attacks on schoolchildren.
“It is like Nigeria is running on autopilot, like a vehicle without brakes. If we allow this to continue, it will become catastrophic.”
He said the Peace Alive Conference was designed not merely to diagnose Nigeria’s security challenges but to identify practical pathways out of what he described as a national crisis.
“We want to find solutions. We want to ask difficult questions and begin to chart a new direction.”
Peace beyond the battlefield
Representing the Chairman of the occasion, Commissioner of Police (Prof.) Ahmed Sanusi, Deputy Commissioner of Police Lawrence Iwobi argued that peace should not simply be understood as the absence of armed conflict.
Instead, he said, genuine peace depends on respect for laws, institutions and shared values.
“When you remove peace, there will be no unity,” he told participants.
“When you remove peace, there will be no development.”
According to him, societies inevitably experience disagreements, but the strength of peaceful communities lies in their willingness to resolve disputes within established legal frameworks.
“It is about obedience and compliance with rules.
“The extent to which we obey laws is very important.”
Iwobi noted that insecurity discourages investment, slows economic growth and weakens community development, adding that citizens also have responsibilities in promoting peaceful coexistence.
“If we preach peace individually,” he said, “the message will spread to more people.”
Why communities matter
A recurring theme throughout the conference was that security cannot remain solely the responsibility of the government.
Participants argued that sustainable peace requires ownership at community level.
Traditional rulers, religious leaders, youth organisations, women’s groups and local civil society organisations were repeatedly identified as critical actors in preventing conflicts before they escalate.
The communiqué urged governments at federal, state and local levels to institutionalise community-based conflict prevention systems while strengthening intelligence gathering, early warning mechanisms and rapid response structures.
It also called for increased investment in youth empowerment, vocational training and poverty reduction programmes, arguing that economic exclusion continues to fuel criminal recruitment.
Delegates stressed that sustainable peace cannot exist without justice, accountability and inclusive governance.
Peace education begins with children
For the past decade, PEPOLAC says it has focused heavily on peace education, particularly among young people.
Ozoemena said the organisation has established peace clubs in schools while training communities on mediation, conflict resolution and reconciliation.
“We believe in catching them young,” he said.
“If children grow up understanding dialogue, tolerance and peaceful coexistence, they are less likely to embrace violence later.”
Beyond education, he said the organisation has also responded to humanitarian emergencies including COVID-19 and flood disasters through relief materials and community support.
“In a situation where people are in pain,” he explained, “you cannot talk about peace.”
Perhaps Ozoemena’s strongest criticism was reserved for leadership. While acknowledging citizens also have responsibilities, he argued that leadership ultimately determines whether peace flourishes or collapses.
The missing ingredient
Perhaps Ozoemena’s strongest criticism was reserved for leadership. While acknowledging citizens also have responsibilities, he argued that leadership ultimately determines whether peace flourishes or collapses.
“Everything rises and falls on leadership,” he said.
“A nation of over 200 million people must be driven by people who think right and do the right things.”
But he also believes policymakers themselves often undermine peace.
“The people advocating for peace are sometimes not peaceful themselves,” he observed.
“You cannot give what you do not have.”
According to him, peace should not simply be discussed in speeches or policy documents.
“It must become a culture.”
Faith leaders: Peace is often misunderstood
Religious leaders attending the conference also reflected on their role in conflict prevention.
Evangelist Ibinabobo Sanipe, National Vice President of the Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas (HOSTCOM), acknowledged that promoting peace is not always easy.
“People sometimes mistake peacefulness for weakness,” he said.
“But we need peace in this world.”
Sanipe said faith leaders have a responsibility to carry the message of peace beyond places of worship into communities where tensions often begin.
“We are peace ambassadors,” he said.
“Everywhere we go, we preach peace.”
Fighting fake news and hate speech
Participants also identified misinformation and hate speech on digital platforms as growing threats to national cohesion.
The communiqué urged journalists to uphold ethical reporting standards, promote peace journalism and actively counter fake news capable of inflaming communal tensions.
Young people were similarly encouraged to use digital platforms responsibly and reject violent extremism and criminal activities.
A wider definition of security
The conference argued that Nigeria’s security response must extend beyond military operations.
Its recommendations included integrating peace education into school curricula, strengthening interfaith dialogue, supporting local peace actors, expanding grassroots advocacy campaigns and increasing funding for community development.
Delegates also called for stronger partnerships involving governments, civil society organisations, international development agencies and the private sector.
Underlying many of the recommendations was a recognition that security challenges often begin long before violence erupts.
Weak institutions, inequality, unemployment, environmental stress and social divisions all create conditions that armed groups can exploit.
A collective responsibility
Closing the conference, organisers issued a broad appeal to Nigerians to view peace as a shared national responsibility rather than the exclusive duty of security agencies.
The communiqué called on citizens, irrespective of ethnicity, religion or political affiliation, to become ambassadors of peace within their own communities.
“Governments alone cannot build peaceful societies without the active participation of citizens, communities and institutions,” the communiqué stated.
Participants acknowledged that Nigeria’s security crisis may be deep, they say it is not irreversible.
If communities embrace dialogue over division, justice over exclusion and cooperation over conflict, they argued, the country can gradually replace fear with hope.
“If we keep peace alive in our communities, we shall secure peace for our nation and contribute meaningfully to global peace.” Ozoemena concluded.