… Identifies Unemployment, Poverty, Marginalizatiom, Absence of Social Cohesion As Major Issues
ActionAid Nigeria has continued to hammer on the need to address unemployment, marginalization, absence of social cohesion and the need to create an enabling environment that would address issues of perceived injustice, key drivers it identified as major drivers of violence in the country.
Mr. Anicetus Atakpu, Resillience Programme Coordinator with ActionAid, Team Lead of the SARVE 11 Project, made the revelation while making a presentation on the Overview of the SERVE 2 Project highlights, Closeout and Sustainability at a 2- Day Media Master Class on Preventing Violent Extremism In Kogi and Nasarawa States, with the theme: Passing The Baton; Co-Creating Sustainable Peace through Journalism.
The Training is funded by Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF) and facilitated by ActionAid Nigeria in collaboration with her state-based partners; Participation Initiative for Behavioural Change in Development (PIBCID), Global Peace Development (GPD) and Beacon Youth Initiative (BYI), Kogi and Nasarawa States respectively.
The 2- Day training is in pursuance of the System and Structure Strengthening Approach against Radicalisation to Violent Extremism (SARVE II) project currently being implemented in the two states.
Mr. Anicetus urged Government at all levels to strive to solve the key identified drivers of violence and address them, says it would go a long way to reducing issues of violence in the country.
According to Mr Anicetus, within the 30 months of implementing the SARVE II project in Kogi and Nasarawa States, it has been able to establish Peace clubs, 24 Women spaces creation of action and response team and has so far engaged 24000 youth, 12 Local Government Conflict Management and Girls Club amongst other achievements in its efforts geared towards preventing violent extremism.
Mr Anicetus disclosed that out of the 24 Communities it has worked and implemented the SERVE 2 Project in the last 30 months, it has to a large extend achieved peace in almost all the Communities.
He appealed to Government at all levels to work towards sustainability of the structures it has established towards striving to address violent extremism in the country.