Nigeria must spend more on peace, says IPCR DG

The Director-General of the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution, Dr Joseph Ochogwu, has emphasized the need for increased investment in peacebuilding in Nigeria. He warned that the cost of failing to prevent conflicts is far greater than the resources required to sustain peace. Ochogwu made these remarks during a keynote lecture at the 2026 Peace and Dialogue Awards, urging Nigeria and other countries to move away from reacting to conflicts and instead commit more resources to prevention, early warning systems, peace education, youth employment, interfaith literacy, justice reform, and community mediation.

He highlighted the severe economic cost of conflict, stating that violence cost the global economy $19.1tn in 2024, which is 13.5% of global GDP, and that every dollar not invested in prevention could cost 20 times more in humanitarian response and reconstruction.

Brief written by urgent.news from Punch Nigeria's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.