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From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
At the Abuja opening of the Two-Day Media Capacity Building, Roundtable, Dialogue, and Flag-Off of the Media in the Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (PCVE) Network, Chair of the Development and Management Team for PCVE Knowledge, Innovation and Resource Hub (KIRH) and PAVE Network, Jaye Gaskia, delivered a powerful call to action centred on lessons learned from over a decade of violent extremism in Nigeria and the imperative of justice for victims and survivors.
Gaskia reflected soberly on the painful and complex experience Nigeria has endured with violent extremism over the past ten years, underscoring that “we think that the time has come for us to utterly reflect, to draw on what lessons we can learn from years of country violent extremism and to see what it is that we are doing right that we can consolidate on and where are the gaps so that we can fill those gaps.” She highlighted the challenge of engaging the youth population, whom she described as “the cannon fodder… easily susceptible and easily mobilised,” and the critical need for reintegration and rehabilitation programmes that prioritise victims and survivors alongside perpetrators.
“There cannot be a reintegration and rehabilitation programme for perpetrators that does not prioritise the needs of victims and survivors,” she stressed, emphasising that “it is unlikely that reintegration can be successful without the rehabilitation of communities.” Gaskia carefully differentiated between rehabilitation of individuals and healing of communities, clarifying, “I’m not talking about their rehabilitation. I’m saying they need to be rehabilitated. But they cannot and they will not be successfully reintegrated without the communities that their actions have impacted being fully rehabilitated.” This, she explained, includes restoring livelihoods and even reconstructing basic community infrastructure, such as housing.
Highlighting the devastating national impact of violent extremism, Gaskia noted that Nigeria has experienced a proliferation of interconnected security challenges beyond the Northeast insurgency traditionally linked to Boko Haram. “If 10 years ago, it was possible to say violent extremism was Boko Haram in Northeast Nigeria, today, these challenges are national. We have banditry, farmer-herder conflicts, kidnapping, and extortion spreading across different regions. These are national problems, not regional ones.”
Gaskia also drew attention to the national PCVE policy, currently under review after being enacted in 2017, calling it a “whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, inclusive, coordinated, evidence-based, and rooted in community agency and resilience.” She said ongoing work includes co-creating state and local action plans and establishing technical working groups to better align governance with the realities on the ground.
Noting governance challenges in security administration, she said, “Security is completely in the hands of the federal government, which makes reforms like decentralising to states difficult. But we must overcome fears about governments controlling security to ensure accountability and more effective responses.”
Perhaps most urgently, Gaskia urged a shift in focus and funding from reactive counterterrorism to proactive prevention. “We think that we should fund PCVE much more than counterterrorism. Let us nip the problem in the bud before we have to put Christ on the earth and put it on the ground,” she said, calling for prioritising prevention despite the challenge that “if you invest in prevention, you don’t actually see the problem happen,” which makes measuring effectiveness harder.
On the role of media, she made a heartfelt appeal: “We call on you for your partnership, to commit to accuracy over sensationalism, to elevate voices of resilience, and partner with the PCVE Knowledge Resource Hub for resources and support.” She described the Hub as an open-source platform hosting knowledge, e-learning, studies, and resources to empower media, civil society, and other stakeholders in PCVE efforts.
Gaskia concluded with a call for collective responsibility across society sectors, emphasising, “Sustainable peace is a shared survival. Together, guided by our values and united in our purpose, we can truly and really pave the way to peace.”
In a key goodwill message, National Coordinator for the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF) Nigeria, Yetunde Adegoke, highlighted the vital role of sustainable community engagement in the fight against violent extremism. She described the gathering as a “watershed moment” in Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to build resilient communities and prevent violent extremism.
Adegoke traced GCERF’s operational presence in Nigeria back to 2016, noting their work through various NGOs across geopolitical zones, particularly in the North Central and Northwest regions. “As donors, we can only ever be catalysts. We’re really looking forward to truly saying that we just catalyse a very sustainable way of preventing and fighting violent extremism, and building resilient communities,” she said.
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She emphasised the strategic shift from short-term project models towards long-term sustainable frameworks, explaining, “The work that needs to be done needs to be done at the community level, so the PAVE Network, across all six geopolitical zones, is intended to really reach these communities and work with them to come up with their own solutions and build their own resilience.” Adegoke highlighted that GCERF supports the PCVE Knowledge, Innovation, and Resource Hub (PCVE-KIRH) as the sustainability model ensuring efforts continue beyond donor funding.
Focusing on the crucial role of local governance and social contracts, she said, “We are trying to restore dominance at the local level, restoring the social contracts between civil society and governments at the lowest levels.” She acknowledged the ongoing challenge of limited local government autonomy but expressed hope in emerging possibilities to strengthen decentralised governance.
Adegoke also called for greater involvement of the private sector in PCVE solutions, particularly through economic empowerment. “Violent extremism is often a result of lack of economic growth in the real sector… We want to develop sectors that generate value chains and enable SMEs to scale livelihoods. When youth and women are engaged in productive employment that produces prosperity, nobody is willing to miss that. This removes one of the key drivers of violent extremism.”
She underscored the importance of community engagement and context-specific solutions: “Gender, mental health, and trauma issues like PTSD should be part of everyday conversations on preventing violent extremism. Communities must be meaningfully involved in discussions and solution development.” She urged documenting and sharing examples of successful interventions to scale them up.
Highlighting the pivotal role of the media, Adegoke addressed media practitioners: “Media plays a very critical role in scaling up prevention efforts. We look forward to reading, debating, and listening to different dialogues around this topic. Congratulations on being part of this new movement to prevent violent extremism.”
Continuing the news story, Programme Coordinator at ActionAid Nigeria, Adamu Aliyu, underscored the powerful influence media holds in shaping public perception and discourse around violent extremism and peacebuilding. “Media is extremely powerful in how it shapes how people view a country, how they perceive security and violence,” Aliyu stated. He reflected on the impact of media narratives on international perceptions, recounting how some countries are often painted as conflict zones solely based on media portrayals, influencing travel and investment decisions. “If you mention these countries, people say, oh, how can I go to this country? How do you accept that you can’t go to those countries? Because that’s what the media gives you,” he remarked.
Aliyu highlighted the critical role media must play in the mainstreaming of Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (PCVE) across all sectors and systems in Nigeria. “Apart from protecting national integrity, the national image, and sovereignty, the PCVE agenda must be integrated in a holistic way into all sectors,” he stressed.
He cited worrying statistics about the mental health crisis linked to the violence, noting that “one in four Nigerians faces mental health challenges,” which exacerbates vulnerability to extremism and conflict. Aliyu stressed that media reporting should be conflict-sensitive and contribute to social cohesion rather than division: “The way media amplifies stories can either fuel violent dialogues or enhance social cohesion among the public.”
Discussing the potential economic role of media, Aliyu outlined how accurate and positive reporting could attract investments and build productivity, which in turn addresses some root causes of violent extremism. “Media can shape the narrative about Nigeria in ways that build investment and economic growth,” he stated. He also emphasised the need to create economic value chains through cooperative models that empower youth and women, making communities more resilient to extremist ideologies.
“Media has a huge role to play in how we marshal this crime and how we achieve peace to prevent and counter violence,” Aliyu said passionately. He called for collaborative efforts to bring these principles into practical projects, building a value chain that can be nationalised and sustained. He concluded by thanking participants for their commitment and encouraging them to carry these discussions forward in practical, impactful ways.
