A not-for-profit organisation, International Alert Nigeria, has empowered communities in Kaduna and Zamfara states on dispute resolutions and how to address gender-based violence.

Country Director, International Alert Nigeria, Dr Paul Nyulaku-Bemshima, said this at a news conference on Friday in Abuja.

The conference was on the closeout meeting of the “Promoting stability, access to justice and accountability” project in the North-West and the establishment of a multi-door court house in Zamfara State.

The project was supported by the UK Integrated Security fund.

International Alert is focused on collaborating with people and communities to disrupt the cycles of violence, resolve conflicts without violence, and build sustainable and inclusive peace.

The aim is to solve the root causes of conflict from the grassroots to the policy level.

Mr Nyulaku-Bemshima said that the intervention was carried out in the North-West because the region was bedevilled by high intensity violence and insecurity, adding that banditry had been on the rise.

He said, “On the integration of women and children in the North-West, we have largely implemented security and justice programmes to make our contribution in reducing the scale of insecurity in the region. Communities have now taken ownership of their peace-building processes. We have set up community dialogue platforms and established safe spaces providing psychosocial support to women who have been affected by the conflict. We have developed community justice and stability plans, which are a model that both the government and organisations interested in peace building, can learn from. We are happy to share this participatory model where communities highlight their priorities and then set up conversations between communities and the state institutions for alignment.”

The Executive Director for voluntary Aid Initiative, Musa Umar, said International Alert empowered communities in Zamfara State to implement a local justice system.

Mr Umar said that people were empowered to identify barriers to access to justice.

“It provided us the opportunity to bring community members and head of security agencies together to identify issues around security priorities and we came up with a work plan. The project also supported other structures in the state to even establish a network that is known as GBV and other marginalised group networks in Zamfara State,’’ he said.

Chairperson, Women Peace and Mediation Platform in the Jemaa Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Grace Yohanna, said that the project augmented the government’s effort in addressing SGBV.

She said, “With the arrival of International Alert and its implementing partners, we are able to reach those in communities that are hard to reach like Dangoma and Goska. The intervention has really helped, because it brought intervention closer to the people by the establishment of the safe space where women go to talk, giving survivals a voice to speak up.’’

Sole Administrator, Tsafe LGA, Zamfara State, Dr Aliyu Tsafe, said the project provided safe spaces and dialogue centres for community members in Zamfara.

Mr Tsafe said that on a regular basis, between 300 and 500 women came together to share ideas on SGBV.

He said that it also helped men to discuss the way forward in tackling insecurity.

Chairperson, WOPEMP, Chikun, Kaduna State, Laura Wambai, said that SGBV and insecurity had drastically reduced in the local government known for its high insecurity due to the programme.

Project Manager, International Alert Nigeria, Sunday Jimoh, said that the organisation and partners established and trained 120 dialogue facilitators in Kaduna and Zamfara states.

He said, “Many conflicts, both interpersonal and community level conflicts were resolved resulting in some of some peace pacts being signed. We also established three networks of women and other marginalised groups in both Zamfara and Kaduna states.’’

(NAN)