By Maryam Diallo
On Monday, the Kaduna State Peace Commission (KSPC) began a 3-day annual planning meeting for 2025, aimed at reinforcing its peace-building initiatives across the state.
The meeting, held at the Commission’s office in the South Wing Complex of the General Hassan Usman Katsina House in Kaduna, was opened by the Acting Executive Vice Chairman of KSPC, Hajiya Khadija Gambo Hawaja. She explained that the event aligns with the Commission’s Strategic Plan (2024-2028).
Hajiya Hawaja emphasized that the meeting would serve as a platform for the Commission, its partners, and stakeholders to evaluate current strategies and collaboratively formulate actionable plans to strengthen peace-building efforts in Kaduna State.
Key objectives of the meeting include consolidating existing efforts, identifying emerging priorities, and coordinating activities for 2025.
She further highlighted that the outcome of the meeting would produce working documents to support ongoing peace initiatives and enhance relationships within the state’s diverse communities.
“All of this is being done in collaboration with our stakeholders,” she said. “When we conceived this idea, we realized the media plays an essential role. The Commission cannot reach every citizen on its own, but the media has the capacity to do so.”
Ms. Hannatu Aruwan, Acting Executive Director of Legal Awareness for Nigerian Women (LANW), also addressed the gathering. She emphasized that refining and developing activities outlined in the Strategic Plan (2024-2028) would greatly contribute to the Commission’s objectives.
“The meeting provides an opportunity for KSPC and its partners to assess key activities such as advocacy, training programs, the development of guidelines, and stakeholder engagements across the state to ensure sustainable peace,” she said.
Aruwan also noted that the documents produced at the end of the 3-day meeting would help the Commission’s development partners, civil society organizations (CSOs), and the media identify areas for collaboration or support in alignment with the Commission’s five-year peace-building plan.
Ibrahima Yakubu, the team leader of the Network of Peace Journalists (NPJ) Kaduna, stressed the significance of the meeting, particularly the role of media in mitigating conflicts and curbing hate speech, especially on social media.
He underscored that media involvement in the stakeholders’ meeting was crucial for exploring how both local and international media can promote peaceful coexistence, religious tolerance, and prevent conflicts. According to him, this can be achieved through early warning and early response mechanisms, while adhering to the “Do-no-Harm” principle in media reporting.
