U.S Institute, Daily Trust hold roundtable on role of media in peace building

 The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) on Tuesday held a policy roundtable with media professionals and relevant stakeholders, to strengthen the role of media in peace building in the country.

Amb. Abdu Zango, Country Manager, USIP Nigeria, said at the opening of the event in Kaduna that the policy roundtable was organised in collaboration with Daily Trust Foundation.

Zango said that the policy roundtable with the theme, “The Media and Peacebuilding in Nigeria” was part of efforts to ensure sustainable peace through professional and responsible media reportage.

According to him, the meeting was organised to highlight challenges and design a road map toward lasting peace for sustainable development.

“This roundtable will seek to share perspectives, experiences and insights among stakeholders to highlight the role of the media in peacebuilding, and conflict transformation in Nigeria.

“USIP has partnered the Daily Trust Foundation to promote peace through the media as critical stakeholders in the peace building process in the country.

“This is because the country is overwhelmed with complex security challenges and while the government is doing the best it can to deal with the situation, the role of the media is very crucial.”

He said that a world without violence was attainable, stressing that when violence erupts, the media professionals and relevant stakeholders must be there to mitigate it.

Zango thanked Daily Trust Foundation for the partnership, adding that USIP would continue to work with relevant stakeholders to preach peace in Nigeria.

Mr Manir Dan-Ali, a Board member of Daily Trust Foundation, noted that the country would not achieve anything without peace, stressing that citizens and media professionals must do what they can to ensure that peace prevails.

Dan-Ali called on journalists to uphold the ethics of the profession and ensure that their reportage does not engender peace in societies.

He also urged media professionals to understand their roles in society and work toward ensuring and sustaining peace for development to thrive in the country.

Mr Muyiwa Adekeye, Special Adviser, Media and Communication to Gov. Nasir El-Rufa’i, thanked USIP and Daily Trust Foundation for the initiative, describing it as “crucial” to peace building.

Adekeye said that as opinion moulders, media professionals must be factual, fair, and unbiased in the discharge of their duties, and stressed the need for more focus on sustaining peace rather than escalating conflicts.

He said that the current security challenges in Kaduna state present an avenue for journalists to reflect on how well the media has helped in building lasting peace in the state.

He said that rather than wait for press releases, statements and news conferences, journalists should investigate conflict situations to establish the facts of the issue and report responsibly.

“It is my hope that the roundtable will help in developing the needed professionalism in media reportage of conflict and violence situations and strengthen the role of media in peace building.

“Media stories should have an impact in promoting peace by focusing on de-escalating conflict rather than escalating conflict,” he said.

On her part, Mrs Pricilla Akut, Vice-Chairperson, Kaduna State Peace Commission, stressed the need for training and retraining of journalists to improve their skills in conflict reportage.

Akut urged journalists to be fair, balanced and work with communities to promote peace through adequate research of causal factors and tailored reportage on sustaining peace.