GCERF, PAVE Network Seek Ways to Transform Conflict-Affected Communities into Engines of Growth

Linus Aleke in Abuja

Key private sector stakeholders, civil society organisations, and development finance institutions have expressed a commitment to exploring innovative strategies for rebuilding conflict-affected communities and reducing the drivers of violent extremism through inclusive economic growth.

The stakeholders made this commitment during a roundtable engagement convened by the Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (PAVE) Network in partnership with the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF).

The event focused on practical pathways for strengthening livelihoods, attracting investment, and fostering long-term stability in fragile regions.

Participants at the roundtable included development practitioners, private sector leaders, researchers, and financiers, reflecting a shared recognition that addressing insecurity requires solutions that go beyond humanitarian responses to sustainable economic systems.

Opening the dialogue, the Chairman of the PAVE Network, Jaye Gaskia, stressed that private sector engagement must extend beyond funding. 

He noted that technical expertise, innovation, and strategic partnerships are equally critical to designing solutions that can be scaled and sustained within vulnerable communities.

The Chairman also introduced the Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism–Knowledge, Innovation, and Resource Hub (PCVE-KIRH), a digital platform developed by the PAVE Network. 

The hub, he said, is designed to serve as a central repository for research, tools, and best practices, while also linking practitioners into a community of practice to share ideas and scale successful interventions.

Discussions also centred on a new livelihoods model based on value-chain cooperatives. 

Unlike traditional cooperatives that focus on single activities, the proposed approach integrates entire production ecosystems, from producers and processors to transporters and distributors.

 According to participants, this model promotes resilience, expands market access, and supports social recovery in conflict-affected areas.

Private sector contributors highlighted practical applications of the model, particularly in agriculture, digital innovation, and youth employment, noting its potential to balance social impact with commercial viability.

Access to development finance featured prominently in the dialogue. 

Experts outlined opportunities within facilities such as the African Development Bank’s Fragility, Conflict, and Violence Support Facility, while emphasising that the main challenge lies in building capacity to develop bankable, risk-mitigated projects.

The roundtable concluded with a consensus on the need to align interventions with state development priorities, strengthen institutional frameworks, and enhance technical capacity.

Participants expressed confidence that, with coordinated effort, conflict-affected communities can be repositioned as drivers of sustainable growth, stability, and national resilience.