In a groundbreaking initiative, the University of Aberdeen has commenced training for 160 teachers in Kwara State, Nigeria, on achieving and maintaining peace and security strategies in schools.
The program, organized in collaboration with the Kwara State Government, aims to equip teachers with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote peace and security in educational institutions.
According to Dr. Manu Lekunze, a lecturer in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Aberdeen, the training is part of a partnership between the university and the Kwara State Government to promote peace and security in schools.
He said, ”160 Teachers would be trained out of which 80 Teachers were already undergoing their training as of yesterday (Thursday) while another batch of 80 teachers will start their training on Friday.”
Lekunze emphasized that, “with education, you can create the right type of people, create the right type of value that will contribute to peace which will lead to prosperity in the society.”
The training program, which began on Wednesday, will see 160 teachers trained in batches of 80. The first batch of 80 teachers has already commenced their training, while the second batch will start on Friday.
The program is expected to equip teachers with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote peace and security in schools, and to provide a platform for students to become advocates for peace and security.
The Kwara State Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Hajia Sa’adatu Modibbo-Kawu, commended the initiative, stating that it was “very forward-looking” to start such a process with young people. She emphasized the importance of promoting peace and security among young people, stating that they would “inherit and build the future of our dear state.”
“The Stakeholders’ Engagement and Launch of Education For Peace & Security Strategy in the state was coming at the right time because no society can witness the forms of development that it envisaged without building enduring peace and security.
“It is very forward-looking to start such a process with and amongst the young people of our communities and state because it is the young people, our students, and learners, who will inherit and build the future of our dear state.”
“For those of us working in the education sector, we have taken up the challenge of providing the platform for our children and learners to become advocates for peace and security in our state. This is possible because of the grand vision of His Excellency, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, whose commitment and support have transformed the educational sector for the better in Kwara State.
“Today, our school has put up a short playlet that emphasises the importance of peacebuilding as part of the overall effort to achieve lasting security in order to deepen development in our communities.
“The grand lesson here is that we must nurture the peace; we must consciously build peaceful communities; and we have to ensure collaboration between individuals in society, in schools, in places of work, to deepen the values of peace and peaceful co-existence in our dear state”, she declared.
The program is part of a broader initiative to promote peace and security in Kwara State, and is expected to have a positive impact on the educational sector in the state.
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Jerome Kalu
Jerome Kalu is currently the Senior Correspondent of PIJAlance in Lagos. He was previously the Campus Information Desk (CID) Editor.