The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission partnered with the African Union Commission (AUC) and other agencies to host 36 youths on a national youth dialogue.
The event which was held in Abuja was with support from the European Union (EU), GIZ, the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) and the Baywood Foundation.
Declaring the Dialogue open, Dr. Aderemi Ajibewa, Director, Political Affairs at ECOWAS, said the National Youth Dialogue was held to interrogate the underlying factors of violent conflicts and harness youth capacities to transform conflicts for the promotion of a peaceful and secure Nigeria.
The Dialogue provoked young Nigerians to design strategies through which they can build and foster a peaceful and secure future that they desire and deserve.
A participant from Katsina State, Ismail Bello said, “Youths will be part of the future local development and assume important roles in the resolution of conflicts within their communities. Thus building their capacity as peacebuilding actors is key to strengthen democratic governance and solve problems at the local and national levels.”
