Participants at the UPF National Seminar in Abuja highlight the role of families in fostering peace and curbing insecurity across Nigeria
As Nigeria continues to battle insecurity and growing social unrest, the Universal Peace Federation Nigeria (UPF), has issued a clarion call for a national return to core family values as a foundation for lasting peace and stability.
At a national seminar held in Abuja, the Secretary-General of UPF Nigeria, Dr. George Ikpot, warned that without peace rooted in the family unit, sustainable national development would remain elusive.
The event, themed “The Family as Building Block of a Peaceful, Harmonised World,” brought together leaders from civil society, academia, and interfaith organisations to explore the family’s critical role in fostering social harmony.
“The family is the smallest unit of society, yet the most powerful,” Dr. Ikpot stated. “When families nurture respect, empathy, discipline, and moral integrity, they produce citizens who contribute positively to the nation. Without peace in our homes, peace in our country is a mirage.”
Organised in collaboration with Celebrity Love for Orphans (CLFO) and the Christian and Muslim Inter-Religious Peace Foundation (CHANMUS), the seminar underscored the family as the cornerstone of a stable society.
In their presentations, some of the speakers called for urgent investment in moral reorientation, parenting education, and interfaith collaboration to rebuild a culture of peace from the grassroots.
Ambassador Simeon Uwa, Executive Secretary of the UN-affiliated International Summit Council for Peace, linked the nation’s rising insecurity to the erosion of family values. “When the family is broken, the society becomes dysfunctional. Many of the young people involved in crime today come from homes without guidance or structure. The breakdown of the family is the breakdown of the nation.” he said.
Professor Mary Aibangbe of Bayero University, Kano, and UPF Coordinator in Kano State, also stressed that education within families plays a transformative role.
“If families are educated, communities and the world become enlightened. Peace begins at home, and the United Nations recognises this through global observances and platforms like this,” she said.
UPF, which holds general consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), has consistently championed the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially those related to peace, education, and strong institutions.
Chairman of CHANMUS, Chief Tunde Oladugbagbe, echoed the sentiment, noting that rebuilding Nigeria must start at the household level. “We must return to raising our children with values. The home must again become a place of moral instruction and emotional strength,” he said.
In recognition of efforts towards peacebuilding, several individuals were honoured at the event, including Ms. Grace Ishola, Managing Director of African Diversity.
She commended the UPF’s vision, stating, “In a time when peace is threatened on all fronts, the UPF’s commitment to healing and unity through the family is both timely and commendable.”
As Nigeria seeks pathways out of division and conflict, the UPF’s message was clear: a peaceful nation begins with peaceful homes.
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