The Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) and Search for Common Ground (SFCG) have called for efforts to address conflict drivers threatening democracy.
The organisations made the call on Thursday in Abuja at a joint news conference to commemorate the 2026 Democracy Day.
The Director-General of IPCR, Dr Joseph Ochogwu, said democracy remained the best form of government and depended on active citizen participation.
According to him, weak civic engagement, voter apathy and poor democratic culture continue to challenge democratic consolidation in Nigeria.
Mr Ochogwu said IPCR’s conflict assessments showed that many pressures on democracy stemmed from citizen disengagement rather than democracy itself.
He urged Nigerians, especially youths, to participate actively in elections and governance processes to strengthen democratic institutions.
The IPCR boss described electoral violence, intimidation and coercive political practices as serious threats to democratic development.
He called on political actors, electoral institutions, security agencies, media organisations and civil society groups to promote peaceful political engagement.
Mr Ochogwu also expressed concern over the increasing monetisation of politics, saying it excluded ordinary citizens from meaningful participation.
He identified terrorism, banditry, organised crime and violent extremism as major threats undermining governance and public confidence in institutions.
Responding to questions, Mr Ochogwu said insecurity would not prevent the conduct of elections in 2027.
He urged Nigerians not to lose hope in the country and to continue supporting democratic processes.
The Director of Programmes, Search for Common Ground, Gift Omoniwa, said protecting democracy required addressing insecurity and conflict drivers.
Mrs Omoniwa said banditry, kidnapping and violent extremism continued to threaten peace, stability and democratic governance across Nigeria.
She stressed the need for inclusive approaches that address root causes of conflict and promote peaceful coexistence.
According to her, vulnerable youths remain targets for recruitment by violent groups, posing risks to national security and democracy.
She advocated greater youth empowerment, economic opportunities and meaningful participation in governance processes.
Mrs Omoniwa disclosed that SFCG and IPCR recently conducted conflict assessments in Benue, Nasarawa, Plateau and Taraba states.
She said the findings were being shared with stakeholders to support evidence-based interventions and conflict prevention efforts.
The interventions include strengthening early warning systems, peace committees and livelihood programmes in affected communities.
Mrs Omoniwa expressed confidence that the measures would support peaceful and credible elections in 2027.
She reaffirmed SFCG’s commitment to working with government institutions, civil society groups and communities to promote peace and democratic governance.
For Remilekun Fayose, what started as a simple decision to watch her first football match at the stadium turned into an experience that changed how she sees the game. Sport247 reports how the young fan shared her excitement after attending the Lagos derby at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena on the 30th of September 2026 admitting that the atmosphere inside the stadium changed her view of watching football.
Remilekun explained that she initially had doubts about going to the stadium because she had always seen football as something mostly enjoyed by men. She described herself as someone who does not normally follow sports closely, but decided to attend the match and she found herself enjoying every moment. What stood out most to her was the atmosphere created by the supporters. She found herself in a large, energetic crowd that reacted passionately to events on the pitch. Although most of the supporters around her were men, Remilekun said their excitement eventually rubbed off on her. “I started feeling excited,” she said, recalling how she found herself shouting at a player who kept falling on the pitch She also compared the atmosphere in the stadium with watching football on television. She admitted that the game can sometimes feel boring when watched from home, but being inside the stadium gave her a completely different experience. According to her, the drums, trumpets, chants and reactions from the fans made the match much more enjoyable than watching it from home. Her first experience has also changed her mind about attending football matches, as she confirmed that she would definitely return to the stadium. Remilekun also encouraged other young women who may not be interested in football to give live matches a chance “You never know until you try,” she said, explaining that people might assume football will be boring without experiencing the atmosphere for themselves Her experience highlights how live football can attract new fans when they get the chance to experience the passion and atmosphere of the game firsthand. Sports 247 continues to bring fans closer to the stories and experiences of shaping Nigerian sports.
MTN Group Foundation and the Gates Foundation have launched a four-year digital health initiative in Nigeria aimed at using artificial intelligence, mobile connectivity and affordable digital devices to improve maternal healthcare for women, particularly those in underserved communities.
The Nigeria Maternal Health Multiplier, announced by MTN Group, parent company of MTN Nigeria, is designed to create an integrated digital ecosystem linking pregnant women, frontline health workers and primary healthcare facilities.
The partnership is backed by an initial investment of approximately $25 million between 2026 and 2030, comprising direct and in-kind contributions from MTN and the Gates Foundation. The organisations said the investment is intended to catalyse additional funding and potentially support expansion of the model into other markets.
The initiative targets 500,000 women by 2030, with plans to equip 5,000 frontline health workers with digital tools for earlier identification of pregnancy and childbirth complications and support 500 health facilities to provide more consistent maternal healthcare.
Dr. Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications Innovation and Digital Economy, on the left; Nompilo Morafo, Chief Sustainability and Corporate Affairs Officer, MTN Group and Mark Suzman, CEO of the Gates Foundation. Image credit: MTN.
The partnership is backed by an initial investment of approximately $25 million between 2026 and 2030, comprising direct and in-kind contributions from MTN and the Gates Foundation. The organisations said the investment is intended to catalyse additional funding and potentially support expansion of the model into other markets. The initiative targets 500,000 women by 2030, with plans to equip 5,000 frontline health workers with digital tools for earlier identification of pregnancy and childbirth complications and support 500 health facilities to provide more consistent maternal healthcare.
Digital health tools to help identify potential warning signs, support follow-up
At the centre of the programme is the deployment of AI-enabled, phone-based decision-support tools for both healthcare workers and mothers. These tools are intended to provide timely health guidance, help identify potential warning signs and support follow-up throughout pregnancy, childbirth and the postnatal period.
The initiative will also address two practical barriers to digital healthcare adoption: the affordability of devices and data, and inadequate connectivity at primary healthcare facilities.
Under the programme, pregnant women will have access to affordable smartphones and mobile data, while frontline health workers will receive connected devices providing access to real-time clinical guidance. Connectivity improvements at healthcare facilities are also planned to ensure that digital services can function more reliably, irrespective of location.
The programme is to complement Nigeria’s existing maternal and child health reforms, particularly the Federal Ministry of Health’s Maternal and Neonatal Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative (MAMII), deployed under the government’s Sector-Wide Approach to health.
Nigeria’s maternal health burden was a key factor in its selection as the first market for the Maternal Health Multiplier. According to figures cited by the partners, Nigeria accounts for nearly 30% of maternal deaths globally, while only 59% of women complete four or more antenatal care visits.
The initiative therefore places digital technology not simply as a communication channel, but as an additional layer supporting the country’s primary healthcare system. Its model combines connectivity, devices, mobile data and AI-enabled decision support with existing healthcare infrastructure and frontline personnel.
Dr Bosun Tijani, Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, said the partnership demonstrated how digital transformation could be applied to foundational public services.
“For too long,” the Minister said, “the biggest barrier to improving service delivery in Nigeria, whether in health, agriculture, or education, has not been a lack of innovations, but a lack of focus on the foundational systems necessary to drive adoption.”
Dr Muhammad Ali Pate, Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, said strengthening primary healthcare and frontline health workers remained central to the government’s health sector reforms.
For MTN, the programme extends the role of its telecommunications infrastructure beyond conventional voice and data services into digital public-health delivery. The group’s contribution combines its connectivity infrastructure, digital inclusion capabilities, mobile financial services, device distribution networks and local market execution capacity.
Ralph Mupita, MTN Group President and CEO, said artificial intelligence could make health information more personalised, predictive and accessible when deployed appropriately.
“Starting in Nigeria, our ambition is to demonstrate a scalable model for improving maternal and child health outcomes across Africa,” Mupita said.
The Gates Foundation says it brings expertise in maternal, newborn and child health, digital health innovation, responsible AI and evidence-based scale-up to the partnership.
Mark Suzman, CEO of the Gates Foundation, said the programme was intended to ensure that AI-enabled healthcare did not become concentrated among populations already able to afford digital services.
The partnership represents an emerging approach to digital health in which connectivity is treated as part of the healthcare delivery infrastructure rather than simply as a telecommunications service. For Nigeria, its effectiveness will ultimately depend on whether the AI tools are clinically reliable, usable by health workers and mothers, available in relevant local contexts, and supported by functioning primary healthcare facilities.
The four-year programme is expected to provide evidence on whether combining AI-enabled health guidance with affordable devices, mobile data and facility connectivity can improve access to maternal healthcare at scale.
