Dr Abiodun Essiet the
Senior Special Assistant to the President, North Central, led the Presidential Community Engagement Team yesterday in a strategic meeting with the Honourable Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (rtd), and senior officials of the Ministry in Abuja. The meeting focused on identifying areas for collaboration and establishing a partnership to strengthen community-driven, non-kinetic approaches to security and peacebuilding across the regions.
The engagement provided a platform for robust discussions on deepening community engagement as a key pillar in tackling security challenges. Key areas explored included enhancing intelligence gathering through community engagement, improving communication of the Ministry’s interventions to local communities, relaying community feedback to the Ministry, and building trust between citizens and security agencies.
Both parties agreed to constitute a joint working team, and we will be organizing regional security summits involving local, state, and federal government officials, where citizens will have the opportunity to present their concerns for appropriate action.
In addition, a direct communication channel has been established between the Ministry and the Presidential Community Engagement Team. Through this partnership, efforts will focus on engaging non-state actors, developing programmes and initiatives to positively engage the youth and discourage their involvement in activities that fuel insecurity, strengthen trust, and address the underlying factors driving insecurity across the country.
The presidential community engagement team present at the meeting was
- Abdullahi Tanko Yakasai SSA Community Engagement (NW)
- Chioma Nweze SSA Community Engagement (SE)
- Abiodun Essiet SSA Community Engagement (NC)
- Moremi Ojudu SSA Community Engagement (SW)