Nigeria must spend more on peace, says IPCR DG

Dr. Joseph Ochogwu, Director-General of the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), urged increased investment in peacebuilding during his keynote lecture at the 2026 Peace and Dialogue Awards. He emphasized that failing to prevent conflicts costs more than sustaining peace. Ochogwu highlighted Nigeria's diverse conflict challenges, such as extremism, banditry, resource conflicts, separatist agitation, and called for targeted responses.

The IPCR DG explained that investing in peace involves more than rhetoric; it requires resources for prevention, early warning systems, peace education, youth employment, interfaith literacy, justice reform, and community mediation. He pointed out that global military spending in 2024 surpassed $2.4tn, while peacebuilding spending was below $60bn, representing just 2.5% of military expenditure.

Ochogwu proposed a five-point compact to address underinvestment in peacebuilding, including speeding up the National Peace Policy, establishing a National Peace Investment Fund, allocating at least three percent of relevant MDAs' budgets to peacebuilding, and strengthening the IPCR's coordination mandate.