Joseph Ochogwu says peace must be treated as national infrastructure, with food security, investment and democratic stability at stake.

By Abdullahi Yusuf

Nigeria must begin treating peace as a daily national investment rather than a seasonal intervention or risk undermining its food security, development and democratic stability, the Director-General of the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), Dr Joseph Ochogwu, has warned.

Ochogwu gave the warning in Abuja on Monday at the IPCR’s 2026 International Day of Peace Commemoration Lecture, where he called for deliberate investment in peace, justice, fairness and inclusion ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.

The lecture coincided with the annual International Day of Peace, observed on September 21, under the 2026 United Nations theme, “Investing in Peace for Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day.”

Ochogwu domesticated the theme for Nigeria as, “Renewed Hope Agenda: Investing in Peace for Democratic Stability – Everyday Pathways to Justice and Inclusion Ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 General Elections.”

He said the theme represented a shift from viewing peace simply as the absence of war to recognising it as a continuous investment necessary for national survival.

According to him, the credibility and peaceful conduct of the 2027 elections would depend not only on what happens at the ballot box, but also on developments in Nigerian communities, markets, local government councils and on social media before election day.

“What happens between now and 2027 – in communities, on social media, in markets and in local government councils – will determine whether the elections are peaceful, credible and inclusive,” he said.

Ochogwu identified violent extremism, farmer-herder conflicts, banditry, youth restiveness, communal tensions, climate-induced competition for resources and misinformation among the fault lines requiring urgent attention.

He also cited youth and women’s grievances, hate speech, weak access to justice at community level and exclusion from the Nigerian project.

The IPCR boss stressed that the consequences of failing to address those challenges would extend beyond security and politics to the wider economy and livelihoods.

“Without peace, we cannot have food security. Without peace, we cannot have quality education, healthcare, or attract investment,” he said.

He said instability disrupts livelihoods, weakens institutions and discourages investment, making peace infrastructure as important to national development as physical infrastructure.

“Every naira, every hour, every platform invested in dialogue is an investment in Nigeria’s survival,” Ochogwu declared.

Ahead of the 2027 elections, he disclosed that the IPCR had intensified conflict-prevention efforts and would activate its national conflict telephony system to monitor and report incidents of electoral and political violence.

Reports generated through the system will be escalated to relevant stakeholders for early intervention, he said.

The Institute is also coordinating the National Conflict Early Warning and Early Response Platform, which connects state-level platforms to strengthen conflict monitoring and response.

Other measures include dialogues with political actors and traditional institutions, engagement with women and youth networks across the six geopolitical zones, and the production of policy briefs on electoral violence mitigation.

Ochogwu said peaceful elections could not be delivered by government alone, calling for a collective compact involving the Independent National Electoral Commission, security agencies, the National Assembly, private-sector actors, traditional and religious leaders, civil society, the media and international development partners.

He urged the National Assembly to strengthen legislation supporting social cohesion, while calling on security agencies to deepen non-kinetic and community-centred approaches.

He also urged businesses to treat peace as a business imperative and the media to invest in peace journalism to counter hate speech and misinformation.

To Nigerians at home and in the diaspora, Ochogwu issued a direct appeal: “Speak peace. Share peace. Fund peace. Teach peace.”

Also speaking at the event, Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni said his administration had deliberately invested in the state’s peace architecture by strengthening early warning and response mechanisms, building residents’ capacity in conflict management, advancing peace education and dialogue, and deploying technology to counter information disorder.

Buni, represented by his Special Adviser on Security Matters, Brig. Gen. Dahiru Abdulsalam (rtd), said the interventions were targeted at “conflict entrepreneurs” who profit from instability.

He reaffirmed Yobe’s alignment with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on durable peace, improved security and inclusive growth.