Plateau Peace Month 2025: Plateau State Peace Building Agency Holds Experience Sharing  Session with Counterparts from Taraba State

As part of activities marking Plateau Peace Month 2025 with the theme “Act Now for a Peaceful Plateau”, the Plateau State Peace Building Agency (PSPBA) organized a one-day Experience Sharing Session in Jos, Plateau State. The event, held at Odilins Event Center, brought together critical stakeholders from Plateau and Taraba States: two states that have suffered prolonged conflicts but are now making strides toward peace and reconciliation.

In her opening remarks, Dr. Julie Sanda, Director General of the Plateau State Peace Building Agency, welcomed participants and underscored the agency’s continuous engagement with stakeholders, youths, and women in building a culture of peace. She commended the Executive Governor of Plateau State, Barr. Caleb Mutfwang, for his unwavering support to the agency, stressing that the experience sharing would provide valuable strategies to consolidate peace.

Delivering a goodwill message, Mr. Nanmark Bali, President of Peace Practitioners (Plateau Chapter), highlighted the organization’s notable interventions including peace-oriented TV programs, interfaith prayers across churches and mosques, peace-tree planting, and the unveiling of a Peace Journal.

In the same vein, Bishop Innocent Rubiruka Solomon, Chairman of Taraba State Bureau for Peace and Conflict Management, appreciated PSPBA for convening the timely dialogue. He lamented the long years of conflict that have hindered development in Taraba but expressed hope, quoting: “We have to learn to live as brothers or perish as fools.”

The highlight of the event was an experience sharing session where participants such as Joseph Nyam (Bible Faith), Ibrahim Maina (Rafinpa), Amb. Yakubu Gam (Gyel), and Amb. Isiah Abubakar (Bukuru) narrated their harrowing encounters during crisis periods when religious and ethnic divides tore communities apart. They, however, testified to the impact of peace interventions facilitated by PARTNERS and the Plateau State Peace Building Agency, which have helped restore dialogue, mutual trust, and peaceful coexistence.

The program also featured a panel discussion on the role of women in grassroots peace building and community resilience, as well as a dialogue session between PARTNER structures and the Taraba State Bureau for Peace and Conflict Management.

Mr. Kenneth Dakop, Team Lead of Strategic Communication at PSPBA, announced the harmonization of existing structures into a unified body called the Community Peace Architecture Forum (CPAF). The CPAF now assumes the mandate of early warning identification, response, facilitating dialogue, and mediating conflicts at the community level.

In his vote of thanks, Mr. Nantip Joseph Laktam, Director of Programs at PSPBA, expressed deep appreciation to the visiting delegation from Taraba State, local partner structures, and the Plateau State Government for their unflinching support in driving the agency’s core mandate. He described the gathering as a step forward in strengthening collaboration and ensuring that peace remains a lived reality across Plateau and neighboring states.