Violent Extremism: Group engages private sector on building resilience in fragile states

Leading figures from Nigeria’s private sector, CSOs and development finance institutions have called for innovative, market-driven approaches to strengthen economic resilience and counter violent extremism in the country’s most fragile and conflict-affected states.

The call was made at a roundtable dialogue in Abuja, convened by the Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (PAVE) Network in collaboration with the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF).

The National Coordinator, Media Against Violent Extremism (MAVE) Network, Senator Iroegbu, made this known in a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja.

Iroegbu said the forum brought together key stakeholders to chart new pathways for transforming conflict-affected communities into engines of sustainable growth.

Speaking at the event, Chairman of PAVE Network, Mr Jaye Gaskia, said the engagement sought to move beyond philanthropy by mobilising private sector expertise, innovation and technical support for peacebuilding and development.

“We are not here just for financial resources. We are also looking for technical expertise, ideas and all other forms of support that the private sector can bring to help communities recover and thrive,” he said.

A major highlight of the dialogue was the unveiling of the Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism–Knowledge, Innovation and Resource Hub (PCVE-KIRH), a digital platform designed to aggregate research, tools and expertise to support community-level PCVE interventions across Nigeria.

Gaskia explained that the hub would serve as both a knowledge repository and a community of practice, enabling practitioners to share innovations, incubate solutions and scale successful initiatives within and beyond Nigeria.

“Participants also advocated the adoption of value-chain cooperatives as a sustainable livelihood model for fragile states.

“Unlike traditional cooperatives, the proposed framework integrates producers, transporters, processors, packagers and distributors into a single ecosystem to strengthen economic resilience,” he said.

The Chief Executive Officer, Agroxchange Group, Mr Adenale Adegoke, said the model combines in-grower schemes, digital agriculture and end-to-end value chain coordination to create jobs, boost incomes and promote environmental sustainability, particularly among youths.

According to the statement , discussions further focused on unlocking development finance, especially through the African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Fragility, Conflict and Violence (FCV) Support Facility.

In his remarks, AfDB consultant, Mr Jumobi Fashola, explained that the facility supports projects that link conflict resolution with economic development, with funding accessible to state governments and private sector actors through financial intermediaries.

He said projects were assessed based on governance risks, climate change impacts, resource-related conflicts and unemployment challenges, adding that eligibility depended on state government requests and compliance with due diligence requirements.

On his part, Mr Ilyasu Ishak of Robust International Commodities Limited noted that access to finance was not the main constraint, stressing that the real challenge lay in developing credible, bankable proposals that could attract investor confidence.

Director of Research at Green Legacy Nigeria, Mr Umar Saleh Anka, shared insights from ongoing research on the Kano–Maraki rail corridor, proposing its transformation into a green agroforestry belt to restore degraded land and reintegrate displaced populations.

The National Coordinator of GCERF Nigeria, Mrs Yetunde Adegoke, disclosed that GCERF was engaging the AfDB to explore de-risking mechanisms for bottom-up, outgrower-based business models in Nigeria’s fragile regions.

She said the engagement aimed to generate strong concept notes capable of bridging community initiatives with large-scale development finance.

According to the statement, the roundtable ended with a consensus on the need to strengthen institutional frameworks, align projects with state development plans, conduct feasibility studies and build capacity for bankable proposals, while factoring in political economy dynamics.

“Participants expressed optimism that combining private sector innovation, development finance and community-centred cooperative models could help reposition Nigeria’s fragile states as hubs of inclusive growth and long-term stability,” he added.