Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND) has suggested that sustainable peace should involve multilateral engagements.
The coordinator, Partners for Peace Network, High Chief Lawal Africas stated this during a two-day workshop in Asaba on capacity-strengthening for councils in Delta State and how to mobilise traditional institutions as mediators for peace and development.
He said the central goal for PIND is to promote and sustain social cohesion and peaceful coexistence in the society, saying that traditional institutions are critical influencers and conflict mediators in their respective states and communities.
While urging that stakeholders should be involved throughout the process of conflict resolution and build on local capacity to manage the conflicts peacefully with home-grown ownership, he said stakeholders should ensure that there is conflict sensitivity and guide against unintentional harms.
Africas gave several approaches in peace-building across the nation to include increasing awareness and understanding of conflicts dynamics, building capacity of peace among actors, interventions to address conflict and violence and promoting synergy and cooperation among actors in the region.
The consultant, Conflict Prevent Councils, PIND, Delta State, Amb Edewor Egedegbe said the peace-building programme was aimed at achieving the greater goal of regional and lasting peace in the Niger Delta.
Egedegbe said PIND achieves this through creating sustainable peace partnerships, encouraging collaboration and synergy among peace actors, providing support for economic development and strengthening indigenous structures for peace while also creating and building interface with larger state-level peace efforts.
