NGO engages 200 youths on anti-drug campaign in Jos

By Martha Agas

A non-government organisation, Centre for Peace Advancement in Nigeria (CEPAN), has engaged 200 vulnerable children and youths in Jos North Local Government Area, in its anti-drug campaign project.

The Project Co-coordinator of CEPAN, Mrs Jummai Fidelis, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Jos.

Fidelis said that the children and youths were selected from four communities in the council area.

According to her, the programme is aimed at strengthening the culture of peace and resilience among young people aged between 10 years and 30 years.

Fidelis said that the participants were selected from Naraguta, Bauchi Road, Angwan Rukuba and Angwan Jarawa for constructive engagement in peace building.

She said that the intervention was part of efforts to facilitate their transformation to societal change agents.

“The beneficiaries of our project are out-of-school children, school dropouts, drug addicts, pilfers and those engaged in other social vices.

“They are trained on peace building and de-radicalisation through counselling and drug therapy.

“A safe space was created in each community with two mentors in each, for them to interface and discuss challenges and seek enduring solutions, “ she said.

She said that the programme was implemented by a consortium led by CEPAN.

She listed the others as Centre for Community Action for Peace and Development, Community Aid Workers Initiative and Gangare Youth Forum, adding that the programme had support from the EU-ACT British Council.

Fidelis said that the project had yielded positive results of rehabilitating youths from drug addiction and other criminal activities within nine months of implementation.

She said that the establishment of interactive platforms and mentorship sessions was to support the youths during rehabilitation process.

Fidelis said that performance review showed that the project had helped in reducing crime rate in the selected communities.

She added that findings revealed lack of parental care, broken homes, bad peer influence and poverty as the factors leading to vices among children and the youth.

(NAN)