IPCR, UK-Funded SPRiNG project deepen inclusive early warning system in Benue

By Benedicta Aboh

The Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s conflict prevention architecture with a renewed focus on gender and social inclusion, as it convened a high-level engagement with Conflict Early Warning and Early Response stakeholders in Benue State.

The engagement, which brought together Community-Based Reconciliation Committees (CBRC), Conflict Early Warning and Early Response Groups (EWRGs), Gender Focal Persons (GFPs), selected Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), faith-based organisations, government response agencies and community leaders from Makurdi, Otukpo and Guma Local Government Areas, was held under the Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria (SPRiNG) project.

Welcoming participants, the Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of IPCR, Dr. Joseph Ochogwu, described the gathering as a critical step toward enhancing collaboration among stakeholders to strengthen Nigeria’s National Conflict Early Warning and Early Response System (NCEWERS).

“This engagement reflects our shared commitment to strengthening the effectiveness of Nigeria’s Conflict Early Warning Early Response System through enhanced collaboration among international and national partners, sub-national government institutions, non-governmental organizations, and grassroots actors,” Dr. Ochogwu said.

He stressed that cooperation across all levels was essential for effective conflict prevention, social cohesion and the promotion of sustainable peace in Benue State and the country at large.

According to him, the complex and intersecting conflicts affecting communities in the state require strong coordination and timely monitoring of conflict indicators.

“As the Federal Government agency mandated to promote peace and conflict resolution in Nigeria, IPCR remains committed to advancing partnerships that support peacebuilding initiatives nationwide,” he added, noting that the Institute’s collaboration under the SPRiNG project is a demonstration of that resolve.

The SPRiNG project, funded by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), is being implemented by IPCR in partnership with the Conflict Research Network West Africa (CORN–West Africa). The initiative is currently operational in four states — Benue, Plateau, Katsina and Kaduna.

Dr. Ochogwu expressed appreciation to the FCDO and implementing partners for their support, stating, “I sincerely appreciate the financial support of the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, as well as the partnership of SPRiNG and CORN–West Africa. I thank all of you for honoring IPCR’s invitation to participate in this critical dialogue.”

He emphasized that mainstreaming gender and social inclusion into NCEWERS was central to changing the course of conflict prevention in Nigeria. “We must recognize that conflict has significantly hindered community development, whereas we all envision a nation where insecurity and violence are unacceptable, infrastructure is protected, and our national aspirations can flourish,” he said, formally declaring the event open.

Providing an overview of the project, Mr. Obidi Anagba, a facilitator for the SPRiNG-UK FCDO partnership with IPCR and CORN West Africa, explained that the initiative aims to strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to prevent and respond to violent conflicts through enhanced technology-driven early warning and early response mechanisms.
According to him, the project is designed to enable real-time collection, integration and analysis of conflict data, including enhanced data integration, geospatial mapping and trend analysis.

“The goal is to improve coordination among security agencies, government institutions and community-based actors, enabling early identification of emerging threats and fostering more effective response actions,” he stated.

Mr. Anagba noted that rising incidents of violent conflict in many communities are largely driven by climate change, environmental degradation and intense competition over scarce natural resources. He said the SPRiNG project seeks to create dialogue platforms with EWRGs and other stakeholders to address these drivers of insecurity.

He described the Benue engagement as a structured reflection platform anchored on evidence-based learning and adaptive programming. “We are here to intentionally learn, unlearn and deepen our understanding of what the SPRiNG project is about, examine what is working, identify what is not working, and interrogate our program assumptions in light of current conflict realities,” he said.

As part of the capacity-building component, participants underwent training on Gender Indicator Monitoring and Reporting for Early Warning and Early Response, peacebuilding and social cohesion, particularly for women and Persons with Disabilities in Benue State.

Facilitator Steve Agbo, who presented an overview of the NCEWERS framework and inclusive early warning systems, said the training was designed “to strengthen the knowledge, skills and institutional capacity of gender focal persons and persons with disabilities to effectively mainstream gender and social inclusion into NCEWERS for enhanced, inclusive and sustainable conflict prevention.”

Another facilitator, Charity Yavala, led sessions on Gender, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) in peacebuilding, as well as the development and application of gender and disability indicators within early warning systems, underscoring the importance of inclusive data in shaping responsive peace interventions.

The engagement concluded with a renewed call for collective responsibility in building a peaceful society, with stakeholders pledging to deepen collaboration from the grassroots to the national level in order to ensure that early warning translates into timely and effective response for sustainable peace in Benue State and Nigeria at large.