The Plateau State Peace Building Agency in tandem with its mandate of engaging stakeholders’ to entrench the ideals of sustainable Peace and Peaceful co-existence amongst the diverse ethno religious groups in Plateau State organized a 2Day capacity building training for staff of the agency at the Dimples Hall in Jos, Plateau state. for 9th and 10th June 2021.
The 2Day training supported by GIZ is centered on structural dialogue will see the staff of the agency receives training on topics including understanding conflict, communication and conflict handling styles while the second day will feature understanding dialogue and the goal of dialogue.
Director-General of PPBA, Mr Joseph Langmang, who was represented by the Director of Internal Audit PPBA, Mr Jerome Bature in his opening remark at the capacity building workshop said the training was meant to add value to the staff of the agency and to improve their skills in the field as it needs to dialogue with most conflicting community.
The team-lead communication and dialogue PPBA, Sumaya Abubakar said though conflict was inevitable given the complexities of our societies however when communities dialogue structurally will help douse conflict or tension as such conflict does not escalate to violent conflict. She said the staff of the agency should be capable and competent enough to go outside the agency to tackle issues of violent conflict at its latent stage before it escalates into violent conflicts.
The director of Programs PPBA and a support facilitator for the 2day capacity building training, Mr Godwin Okoko said with the emerging challenges being faced, it was only adequate that the agency enhances the capacity of the staff to enable them to carry out their work effectively at the community level as well as grassroots level.
Mr Okoko said the goal was of the training will center on looking at the weakness or gaps of the Agency staff, then try to fill them and further look at the areas of strengths of the Agency and further strengthen them more as this will facilitate their dialogue capacity with the aim of resolving differences and conflicts especially within communities that have been in conflict over the years.
Mr Gad Peter Shamaki, another facilitator at the 2day training will also build on the capacity of the staff in discussing, understanding the rule of Dialogue in conflict transformation, Understanding the difference between dialogue and debate, the role dialogue can play in resolving conflicts and looking at dialogue from a collective and wholistic engagement.
The Plateau Peace Building Agency (PPBA) is an institutional framework established by law in response to the challenges of peace and security in the state. Their mandate is to promote the culture of peace and harmonious coexistence, among the various ethnoreligious divides on the Plateau.
