Interaction in Nigeria

On 23rd November 2008 I had the privilege of going to Abuja, Nigeria to participate in the ‘InterAction: Trust the difference’ leadership programme organised by the British Council. The programme was created to assist emerging leaders by exploring and discussing global issues that threaten peaceful co-existence within society. Not only was I thrilled at the prospect of spending six days in Abuja with its 35 degree temperature in November, the other delegates included twenty eclectic professionals from media, government and charitable organisations from all across UK. Moreover, at Abuja forty other remarkable individuals from Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria,Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan and Zimbabwe were going to join us.

Based on the appreciative enquiry model the InterAction programme encouraged the participants to appreciate the best qualities of the organisation they worked for and that can lead to discoveries that build a new future where best practices become more common (Cooperrider and Srivastva, 1987). During the trip we began developing skills that
facilitate difficult discussion and gained an understanding of how to work effectively with different cultures and communities at risk of conflict. Accepting and celebrating differences is believed to be paramount in conflict resolution.

With the help of the course leaders and a learning partner we were able to identify and explore a breakthrough
initiative that would promote peace in the community we live in. The trip allowed me to reflect and conceptualise my contributions towards promoting peace and building trust. Working as the Co-ordinator of United Faiths I have been amazed, awed and grown through the change I’ve witnessed in people as they’ve shared their stories and personal experiences through the participation in interfaith activities. My experience as a Pakistani Christian has made me recognise the lack of awareness about the diversity in our communities and drives me to voice the opinions of the religious minorities in the UK in order to prevent racial and religious discrimination. I have found that by providing alternative voices to mainstream stereotypes through religious literacy programmes we have been able to reduce the misconceptions people have about each other and begin to build successful working and personal relationships. Moreover, as my breakthrough initiative, I intend to work on increasing participation of young people in peace initiatives so that the future leaders of our communities are aware of the struggle of others and take forward the peacemaking agenda. More specifically this can be done through creating safe spaces where people can discuss conflictual issues in a respectful way, developing joint initiatives with the government and third sector to support each other. Involving representatives from communities and listening to them before developing social cohesion projects and policies will produce projects and policies that reflect the social dynamics and needs of the community and will therefore be more productive. Finally we need to challenge negative stereotypical images in the media and society about certain groups by educating others. The success of this programme is largely due to the ability of its staff to draw together a group of diverse, open minded but extremely driven people.

Certainly my experience was enriched by the stories I heard from my learning partner, a civil rights activist from Sudan called Arafa Galil whose breakthrough initiative was to create dialogue between Northern and Southern Sudanese women. She enthusiastically shared her aim of developing a charity that could provide basic education for Sudanese women but also allow full exploration of issues such as gender equality and discrimination. She wanted to extend this project to include police and government officials and train them so they go back into the community and raise human rights awareness. Arafa also spoke of her experience of campaigning as a young university student with her fellow students for a woman’s right to not cover her head as required by the Sharia Law in Sudan. This consequently led them to set up an underground charity to work for women in prisons and, more recently, to help survivors of the genocide in Darfur. Throughout our discussions Arafa highlighted the importance of empowering the young Sudanese people for a better future for their people and country.  This sentiment was accentuated by the many activists and professionals I came across; whether it was Justice Hannatu Balogun who lamented the lack of interest among young professionals who strived for individual instead of national prosperity, or Catherine Gusim a zonal inspector of an education and peace building overseeing 60 schools in Nigeria to encourage young people to recognise the strength within themselves to change the society they live in. Similarly, when I got the chance to visit Action Aid in Abuja a vast majority of their work was based on empowering their youth.

During my short stay it was difficult to fully comprehend the effects of the long history of religious conflict that exists in Nigeria. However, I was given a glimpse into the lives of dedicated individuals who were gearing up to empower themselves and their young people and ready to deal with the riots that broke out on the day we were flying out of Abuja.

Written by Ushna Moghal, Co-Ordinator, United Faiths