An NGO, the Social Justice and Human Development for Peace Initiative (JDPC) of the Catholic Archdiocese of Jos, has inaugurated a new project to promote Cultural and Religious Pluralism in Nigeria.
Speaking at the event on recently in Jos, Rev. Fr. Basil Kassam, the Assistant Coordinator of JDPC, said that the project is supported by the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD).
Kassam explained that the project, tagged “Barometer of Cultural and Religious Pluralism in Nigeria”, is funded by Pharos Observatoire, a French Organisation.
He added that the project is a research-based initiative for evidence-driven peace building, aimed at strengthening Early Warning and Early Response, building trust and promote inclusive governance.
The assistant coordinator said that the project would be implemented in Jamaa’a, Kaura, Barkin Ladi and Bokkos, Local Government Areas of Plateau and Kaduna state, respectively.
“The division along religious, ethnic and political lines are too often exploited, deepening mistrust and weakening the bonds that hold us together
“These fractures do not only threaten peace, they undermine development, justice and the dignity of the human person.
“This research is a practical tool for transformation; by strengthening early warning and early response mechanisms, we seek to move from reactive to crisis management to proactive peace building.
“By generating credible, data-driven insights, we aim to replace suspicion with evidence, rumour with fact and fear with informed action,”he said.
Kassam said that the project particularly aimed at providing reliable data to inform policies and interventions, strengthen collaboration between community leaders, faith actors, civil society and government institutions.
He added that it would promote dialogue and trust across divides, empower communities to identify and address tensions before they escalate into violence.
He further noted that the projects is part of it modest contribution towards ensuring accessible justice, inclusive governance and peaceful coexistence.
