By Pius Awunah
Benue State Governor,Reverend Fr.Hyacinth Alia has called for the inclusion of non-state actors, traditional rulers faith-based institutions, civil society and local communities in the security frameworks to build sustainable peace across Africa.
He made the call in a paper he presented at the National Institute for Security Studies (NISS), Abuja during a seminar on “Non-State Actors in Crisis Management and Conflict Mitigation: Strategies, Limitations and Opportunities for Sustainable Peace and Development in Africa”.
The governor who made the presentation on Monday, October 13,2025, shared Benue State’s experience as a model of subnational resilience through agricultural industrialization, massive infrastructure development, youth empowerment, and digital governance, which he said “are driving peace, prosperity, and self-reliance in communities within Benue state”.
He maintained that true peace was not just the absence of war but the presence of justice, inclusion, and opportunity,adding that “Africa must be built to secure itself, feed itself, and trade with itself”.
