11 DAYS OF NATIONAL PEACE: PEACE, JUSTICE, AND STRONG INSTITUTIONS

We are members of the #TheCounsellor Organization; an ordinary and people driven civil society group that is committed to fighting for the welfare, interests and emancipation of the Nigeria People from poor governance and failed leadership.

#TheCounsellor is a platform with "equality, Fairness and Justice" as our Motto. We are a group of Nonpartisan Nigerians who feel that active Political Process participation and Massive Public Enlightenment campaigns and engagement of a well-informed populace is the best solution to solving the perpetual societal, moral, political and leadership crisis in our country as well as the social problems that pose serious challenges to our security, economy and national developmental objectives and initiatives.

We are a group of youths that came together with the aim of addressing the needs of the communities. Since most youths came from rural areas where mostly is neglected and marginalized we came to form a group to create awareness among the youths to build hope to the hopeless.

The Counsellor organization has always depended on its own members for her financial obligations and this has limited our campaigns to Lagos State and the extent we intend to reach.

Our goal is to cover all the states in Nigeria, mostly schools as it affects the Nigerian youths but Finance has been our major is our major constraints.

Since we started the group we have tried to implement these activities with our own resources but it has proved to be very difficult because of high rate of poverty and our main aim was to establish a sustainable project that can bring a micro-enterprise to the youth and the community. Therefore, this is what led us to look for partners and sponsors who can help us with financial and technical assistance. We are therefore writing to know if there are opportunities in both government and private organization that you know would be ready to assist this project 11. You can help us, be our guide, in line with this we can forward our proposal.

How would peace reign?

End extreme poverty. Fight inequality and injustice. Fix climate change. The Global Goals are important, world-changing objectives that will require cooperation among governments, international organizations and world leaders. It seems impossible that the average person can make an impact. Should you just give up?

No! Change starts with you. Every human on earth—even the most indifferent, laziest person among us—is part of the solution. Fortunately, there are some super easy things we can adopt into our routines that, if we all do it, will make a big difference.

The Project 11:

Project 11 is going to be the month when we will take to the villages and communities in the country to create awareness on the role peace can play to bring sustainable growth to the country and what the government can do to fulfill the aims and objectives of project 11.

Project 11, will run from 11th September, 2017 through 21st September, 2017.

We should have it in mind that Peaceful, just and inclusive societies are necessary to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

PROJECT 11 focus more at strengthening the initiative of unity, equality, oneness and above at advancing the culture of peace.

Focus Area(s)

DAY 1- Unity

Day 2- Interdependence

Day 3- Environment

Day 4- Economic Justice

Day 5- Health

Day 6- Children & Youth

Day 7 – Women

Day 8- Human Rights

Day 9- Freedom

Day 10- Disarmament

Day 11 – Peace

The ‘P’ in project 11 means PEACE

Why do we celebrate International Day of Peace?

The United Nations' (UN) International Day of Peace is celebrated on September 21 each year to recognize the efforts of those who have worked hard to end conflict and promote peace. The International Day of Peace is also a day of ceasefire – personal or political.

What is world day of peace?

The International Day of Peace, sometimes unofficially known as World Peace Day, is observed annually on 21 September. It is dedicated to world peace, and specifically the absence of war and violence, such as might be occasioned by a temporary ceasefire in a combat zone for humanitarian aid access.

What is peace on earth?

World peace or peace on Earth is an ideal state of freedom, peace, and happiness among and within all nations and people. This ideal of world non-violence provides a basis for peoples and nations to willingly cooperate, either voluntarily or by virtue of a system of governance that prevents warfare.

What’s the goal here?

Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.

Why?

Peaceful, just and inclusive societies are necessary to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). People everywhere need to be free of fear from all forms of violence and feel safe as they go about their lives whatever their ethnicity, faith or sexual orientation.

In order to advance the SDGs we need effective and inclusive government institutions that can deliver quality education and healthcare, fair economic policies and inclusive environmental protection.

What needs to be done to address this?

To achieve peace, justice and inclusion, it is important that governments, civil society and communities work together to implement lasting solutions to reduce violence, deliver justice, combat corruption and ensure inclusive participation at all times.

Freedom to express views, in private and in public, must be guaranteed. People must be able to contribute to decisions that affect their lives. Laws and policies must be applied without any form of discrimination. Disputes need to be resolved through functioning political and justice systems.

National and local institu-tions must be accountable and need to be in place to deliver basic services to families and commu-nities equitably and with-out the need for bribes.

How does this goal apply to me, wherever I live?

Crimes that threaten the foundation of peaceful soci-eties, including homicides, trafficking and other organized crimes, as well as discriminatory laws or practices, affect all states. Even the world’s addressing corruption, crime and human rights violations for everyone at home.

What would be the cost of not taking action now?

Armed violence and inse-curity have a destructive impact on a country’s devel-opment, affecting economic growth and often resulting in long-standing grievances among communities.

Violence, in all its forms, has a pervasive impact on societies. Violence affects children’s health, devel-opment and well-being, and their ability to thrive. It causes trauma and weak-ens social inclusion.

Lack of access to justice means that conflicts remain unresolved and people cannot obtain protection and redress. Institutions that do not function accord-ing to legitimate laws are prone to arbitrariness and abuse of power, and less capable of delivering pub-lic services to everyone.

To exclude and to dis-criminate not only vio-lates human rights, but also causes resentment and animosity, and could give rise to violence.

What can we do?

As The Counselor Organization, a people Civil Society group is ready to take a genuine interest in what the government is doing. Raise awareness in our community about the realities of violence and the importance of peaceful and just societies, and identify how we can pursue the SDGs in our daily life.

As citizen, you must exercise your right to hold your elected officials to account. Exercise your right to freedom of information and share your opinion with your elected representatives.

Be the change – promote inclusion and respect towards people of different backgrounds, ethnic origins, religions, gender, sexual orientations or different opinions. Together, we can help to improve conditions for a life of dignity for all.

To participate, kindly send your name, State of residence and whatsapp number to [email protected]