HDP Nexus Workshop Delivers Hope For Displaced Families and a Blueprint For lasting Peace

In Jos, a two-day workshop on the Humanitarian, Development, and Peace (HDP) Nexus and Children Affected by Armed Conflict unfolded as a story of resilience, collaboration, and hope. From the opening remarks to the symbolic handover of humanitarian support, voices from government, international partners, and local communities painted a picture of shared determination to heal Plateau State.

Representing the Plateau State Government, Arc. Samuel Nanchang Jatau, through Gayi Timothy Gayi, reaffirmed government’s commitment to peace, security, and development. He recalled over two decades of conflict that displaced 31,000 households and deepened poverty. Stressing the interdependence of relief, development, and peace, he warned that relief alone creates dependency, development without peace is unsustainable, and peace without livelihoods is fragile. He urged collective action to deliver practical, coordinated solutions.

To set the tone, Dr. Julie Sanda, Director General of the Plateau State Peace Building Agency, welcomed dignitaries and reaffirmed the agency’s vision of building lasting structures for peace, justice, and inclusion. She emphasized the need to coordinate partners, empower women and youth, and tackle the root causes of conflict, stressing that true peace goes beyond recovery—it requires rebuilding livelihoods and giving children back their future.

Following this, Mr. Ashom Azi, representing the Executive Secretary of the Plateau State Emergency Management Agency (PLASEMA), gave a sobering account of conflict’s toll—destroyed homes, displaced families, and children stripped of education. He outlined government’s multi-pronged response: providing emergency relief, working with security agencies, strengthening partner coordination, and creating pathways for safe return and livelihood restoration. According to him, the collaboration between PLASEMA and the Peace Building Agency offers a powerful model of integrated response.

Linking local and regional efforts, Mr. Bashar Aminu, Senior Counsellor at the ECOWAS Mission to Nigeria, highlighted the workshop’s role in uniting stakeholders. He stressed the urgency of stronger coordination for vulnerable groups and commended the partnership of ECOWAS, GIZ, and the Plateau Peace Building Agency. His call was clear: practical outcomes must drive resilience and development in Plateau State.

In the same spirit, Mr. Yakubu Muhammad Adamu, Deputy Director of Humanitarian Affairs, representing Minister Dr. Tonko Yusuf Sununu, underscored the urgency of addressing the plight of women and children. He emphasized the HDP framework as a pathway to restoring dignity, merging relief with long-term development, and empowering displaced communities.

Further strengthening the regional voice, Dr. Sintiki Tarfa Ugbe, ECOWAS Director of Humanitarian and Social Affairs, described the workshop as a movement that puts women and children at the center of recovery. She praised the Plateau State Government, GIZ, and other partners for fostering an integrated response where local, national, and regional actors unite for lasting peace.

Adding the perspective of international development partners, Myriam Wedraogo, Head of Programme for the GIZ Peacecore Project, underscored Germany’s Transitional Development Assistance (TDA) as a lifeline in conflict zones. Through the Peacecore II project, GIZ supports conflict transformation and livelihoods in Plateau. She lauded the Plateau Peace Building Agency and ECOWAS for their collaboration, expressing hope that the workshop would produce best practices to strengthen support for women and children.

The climax of the event came with the symbolic handover of humanitarian support worth ₦26 million from ECOWAS to the Plateau State Government, which in turn passed it on to beneficiaries. Panel discussions further enriched the workshop, with experts from government, ECOWAS, GIZ, and other partners deliberating on how to deepen the HDP Nexus approach.

Bringing the voices of the displaced to the fore, Mr. Mathew Mallau, leader of IDPs in Bokkos, thanked ECOWAS for their support. He admitted that life in displacement remains harsh, but he expressed hope that with continued partnerships, “things will get better.”

In conclusion, the workshop was not just another meeting, it was a collective commitment to transform conflict into opportunity, despair into hope, and displacement into dignity. Through the HDP Nexus, Plateau State is charting a path where relief, development, and peace reinforce one another, giving its people, especially women and children the chance to heal and thrive.