On the 5th November 2016 peace clubs advisors from Bauchi, Gombe and Yobe states met at Khairan Guest Palace, Bauchi to deliberate on the proportions and expectations of the peace clubs and the students for peace clubs. During the meeting the participants appreciated  CITAD  effort of coming up with the initiative of engaging  youth  in the campaign against violence and promotion of peace in the country  and  thanked MacArthur Foundation for supporting CITAD to do the job.

The participants also recognized peace and stability as an imperative to development and youth especially those in schools as a better tool for promotion sustainable peace in country especially if the idea of tolerance, understanding and respect for diversity is inculcated in them at their tender age.

CHALLENGES

The participants identify the following challenges as impediments of effective running of peace clubs activities in most of the secondary schools and the tertiary institution.

1. The academic engagements of the students of tertiary institutions that nowadays deter most of the tertiary institution students from participating in other extra-curricular activities.
2. The economic situation that makes students to be combining studies with other income earning activities,  make some students to restrict themselves to  only studies and other financial activities and shun any activity that will not generate income for them.
3. In Yobe state  there is restriction of any public gathering that will  be crowded  due to the insurgency, this will affect some of the sensitization programmes and peace campaign to be conducted by the clubs
4. Lack of access to phone and restriction of phone usage by students in boarding schools will affect and exclude the student in engaging in the online campaign against hate speech and other peace promotion activities.
5. Lack of internet services in some schools is another challenge for online activities

RECOMMENDATIONS

The participants recommend that if below measures are taken the clubs will be very effect:

1. S4P members should use the orientation period in first semesters to sell the idea to new students as they come before been occupied by other academic activities.
2. Banners to welcome students to the campuses should be provided to be fisted at strategic places on the campuses as a means of drawing the attention of new students on the existence of the clubs in the schools
3. Students that are not allowed to use Cell phones in schools should be encouraged by the advisors to be doing the online campaign at home during holidays and in school the advisors to be collecting the peace messages from the students and share them online but the name of the students that designed the messages should put as acknowledgement
4. The advisors should be more proactive through organizing activities such as quizzes, debate, cultural dances, drama etc to make the clubs more attractive to the students
5. CITAD should provide identity for the members  especially  customized T shirts to make the students proud of their membership to the clubs
6. Excursion and experience should encourage and support by CITAD among the schools where the clubs exist
7. If possible noticed and banner should designed for the clubs for their meetings and notification of the existence of the clubs I the schools
8. Advisors should get means of using the media in amplifying the activities of their clubs
9. All advisors should send list of their members and minutes of their meetings to CITAD  on or before Friday 11th November 2016

Report of NorthEast Regional Meeting for Peace Advisors And Students for Peace (S4P) Leaders, Organized by CITAD with Support from MacArthur Foundation.

On 5th November, 2016 the Centre for Information Technology And Development (CITAD) organized a one day Regional Meeting for Peace Advisers and Students for Peace (S4P) Leaders held at Khairan Hotel, Bauchi, Bauchi State. The Meeting kicked up at 10:00AM with registration of participants, opening prayers by one of the participants and self introduction.

The session started with brief insight of the works of CITAD, Its missions and vision; this was done by Ali Sabo, CITAD. The floor was later preceded by the presenter of the day, in the name of Isah Garba, CITAD, he started with highlighting some of the key roles CITAD maintains as strategiesfor peacec campaigns. These include:

• Social accountability
• Free computer training for secondary school teachers (Sighting Bauchi as a case studty)
• Computer quiz competitions for secondary schools
• Open mind programs
• Peace and  its campaign
• Monitorung hate speech
• Peace clubs and S4P

From there, he moved on with the presentation proper were he stressed the need to engaged youth in peace campaigns, he also pointed that there is strong need for  interaction between peace clubs in secondary and tertiary institutions, this will help in:

• Raise awareness
• Sensitize students in eradicating extremism
• Provide training on the issue on peace
• Serve as the security to stands firm on good
• Makes them have confidents on the peace
• Support them and encourage them to involve others too

Some activities of the activities of CITAD include:

• Computer skills training
• Entrepreneurship training
• Social media ethnic training
• Writing workshops

In the course of his lectures, he informed the audience that CITAD is ever ready to sponsor provision of publicity and IEC materials to any school in question.

He mentioned some of the basis the club should be run, among which are:

• Targeting just 50  students in each school, for CITAD to chew selected schools well
• The targeted states are Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, Katsina though pressureis mounted on the centre to include Zamfara  

Some prizes are also reserved for outstanding clubs (Best 3) each term and year respectively.

Programs for the advisors are also highlighted.

Wider engagement programs of the center include:

Monthly social peace messaging competition, track hate speech on Facebook, Twitter and Istagram and tight engagements; touching many places.

At the end of the presentation, these questions were thrown to the floor members (participants)

1. Deliberate on how to make the clubs more effective

The responses from the floor:

• Using available facilities
• Help the students to know themselves
• Continue to sharing ideas (among the clubs)
• Including debate, quiz and cultural displays will encourage more students to join the move
• Missions and vision has to be pronounced well, this will help in making larger society embrace it all
• Introduction of jingle
• Encourage them to join using cash and kind
• Call ministry of education to create time for peace clubs (This was addressed immediately by the presenter, saying that Wednesdays are selected for clubs, the issue here is with Yobe alone but Isah Garba assured him that his point is noted, actions will be taken soon)

1. How the students can be more attracted

• Peace advisors should be committed
• Students are attracted by new things, use of banners, excursions and the likes (Isah Garba commented on this, one big constraint is with NGOs policies. On going out, each student has to be insured and some teacher leave when they got all the necessary know how on peace )

1. Propose parameter for evaluating the performance of the clubs

• Through regular visit
• Following what each club does on their social media handles
• In schools were phone are allowed, regular assessment on what they are expected to learn

1. Contributions to how the activities we proposed can be delivered and suggest additional ones

• Mentoring fresh students, right at the gate
• Conniving with SRC, Registry, Dean Student Affairs
• Involving high profiled persons will encourage others
• Good communication between the students and advisors
• Introduction of local languages, some people are poor in English

A question was raised by one of the participants from Gombe, Is there any provision for special schools (Disabled ones)?

She was answered YES by Isah Garba.

She went on to expatiate more on the need to include special education students in the circle.

The program ended at 3:00PM