Stakeholders Charge Media, Government to Champion Peace for Economic Growth

Rebecca Ejifoma

Critical stakeholders have charged the media and the government at all levels to champion peace across the nation for economic growth.

They made this call at Imperative of Peace for a Successful Economy virtual conference put together by the American Business Council (ABC), the Nigerian Orientation Agency (NOA) and The Nedola Initiative.

The webinar engaged groups including the media, private sector, clergy, government officials, and the public to underscore the need for a peaceful society where lives and businesses can thrive while encouraging Nigerian institutions to partake in peace making processes and programmes.

According to the President of ABC, Mr. Dipo Faulkner, said that there is a direct link between peace and economic prosperity, hence, the need for everyone to work together to sustain the peace in the country.

“The current insecurity in Nigeria has cast a big shadow on investors’ confidence in the country, which was evidenced in continued decline of direct investment into the country,” he bemoaned.

While citing an economic impact survey by the ABC on US companies showing that insecurity is a major concern to US investors in Nigeria, Faulkner pledged the Council’s commitment to support initiatives geared towards championing peace and harmony in the country.

Speaking also, the Director General of NOA, Dr. Garba Abari, said that a country as diverse and massively endowed in human and material resources as Nigeria cannot afford not to have peace.

Abari, who decried that the nation had abandoned the standards put in place by founding fathers towards creating a functional environment, outlined, “They worked hard to set up a certain standard of governance.

“They succeeded in creating a society that is working and functional but along the line, we messed it up. We lost focus in our governance process and procedure. We lost what was supposed to be the strength of our development.”

While listing some steps that can help Nigeria return to the development track, Abari said, “Government at all levels must encourage participatory and inclusive government. The country must be guided by the rule of law because no society can make progress without respect for rule of law.”

“Corporate organisations need to play an active role in promoting peace. In any society that is experiencing insecurity, corporate organisations usually are the first to fall victim because no market will open, the company will not produce, the banks will not open. The cumulative effect of that is economic stagnation.”

The former Registrar and CEO of APCON, Garba Kankarofi, urged the media to promote peace and unity in the country.

He enjoined them to distance themselves from “Politicians who are committed to fuelling disunity and conflict. The media need to play an agenda-setting role whether we like it or not”.

While reminding the nation that nobody wins in a war-war scenario, Kankarofi urged media practitioners to do self-regulation.