Promoting peace in Niger Delta: PIND trains 90 youth

L-R: Acting Executive Director, Dr. Effiong Essien; Peacebuilding Program Manager, Dr. David Udofia and Senior Peacebuilding Coordinator, Mr. Afeno Odomovo, all of PIND Foundation, at the recently concluded 2025 Niger Delta Peace Champions Workshop in Akwa Ibom.

Tony Okoh, Uyo

Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND) has taken a significant step towards promoting peace and stability in the region by training 90 young people in conflict prevention, early warning systems, and community-level peacebuilding.

The two-day 2025 Niger Delta Peace Champions Workshop, held in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom state, brought together youths from across the region to equip them with essential skills for promoting peace and stability.

Speaking at the workshop, acting executive director of PIND, Effiong Essien, described young people as catalysts for peace, adding that the transformative power of youth-led peacebuilding cannot be overstated.

He commended Akwa Ibom for serving as a model of peaceful coexistence and community-driven development.

“This workshop underscores PIND’s commitment to fostering youth-led, data-driven, and community-based peacebuilding in the Niger Delta,” Essien said.

“By investing in human capital and promoting inter-community cooperation, the initiative strengthens local resilience to conflict and drives economic and social progress.”

David Udofia, peacebuilding programme manager at PIND, said the participants — known as peace champions — have been equipped to return to their communities and become agents of transformation.

“Peacebuilding begins with preparation, vision, and collaboration. These champions are returning to their communities not only with new skills but with a renewed commitment to transform their environments,” he said.

The peace champions, aged 18 to 35
and drawn from the nine Niger Delta states, were trained on PIND’s SMS-based conflict early warning and early response (EWER) system — a tool designed to support real-time conflict monitoring and grassroots intervention.

Participants also engaged in sessions on mindset transformation, conflict analysis and management, leadership, volunteerism, and entrepreneurship.

Facilitators included CEO of Amy6015 Global Enterprise, Nwamara Amadikwa, alongside PIND’s peacebuilding experts: Afeno Odomovo, Chukwudi Njoku, and Abiodun Akanbi.