Country: Nigeria

About: A young peacebuilder with unwavering passion for community development and transformative change. He founded the Youth Coalition Against Terrorism in Nigeria to address violence. He studied MSc Africa and International Development at the University of Edinburgh, UK and BSc Political Science at the University of Maiduguri, Nigeria. He was the Commonwealth Youth of the Year in 2016 and “One of the 10 Outstanding Young People in the World” in 2017 by the Junior Chamber International.

Everyone has a role to play in creating change in his/her community and making the world a better place. I hail from north-eastern Nigeria, the hotspot of the Boko Haram insurgency. In 2010, I survived a deadly Boko Haram attack, my two uncles died in a bomb blast and one of my friends was kidnapped. These horrific incidents fueled my desire to stop this bloodshed. In August 2010, I founded the Youth Coalition Against Terrorism (YOCAT), a volunteer-based coalition of over 600 youth in north-eastern Nigeria that works to unite young people against violent extremism through job creation.
To me, one of the powerful ways to make a change is to empower young people to reach their potential and to create a more peaceful world.
Here are my 5 steps on how to promote peace:

Recipe for Change: 

1. You must be the peace you seek in the world. It all starts with you. Imbibe tolerance, reach out to others from different religions and ethnicities. Demonstrate integrity in your words and actions.
2. Organize peacebuilding programs in your school and community. Learn and teach conflict resolution skills. Talk about peaceful ways to resolve conflict. Do a search for “conflict resolution training”, “conflict mediation training” to find resources.
3. Mentor and empower other young people to promote peace. Teach them how to live peace, how to form peace clubs and organize peacebuilding activities in their schools and communities.
   4.Volunteer with peacebuilding organizations. Volunteering with organizations that promote peace can play a vital role in sparking passion and a direction on how to better peace. You can find organizations through the Alliance for Peacebuilding alliance for peacebuilding.org.
4. Encourage authorities to promote peace. Creating a peaceful world is possible only if the root causes of fragility, conflict and violence are addressed. So, encourage political and community leaders to take more action to promote peace.

Recipe: Nigerian Jollof Rice

Jollof rice is a very common dish prepared in many African countries and each recipe differs depending on the nation. This recipe is of my favourite: Nigerian Jollof rice.

INGREDIENTS:

5 medium sized Roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped 1 medium sized onion, roughly chopped
2 scotch bonnet peppers (habanero)
¼ cup of peanut oil
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 cups of parboiled rice
2½ cups of chicken stock
1 tsp salt to taste
½ tsp curry powder
½ tsp thyme
1 tsp All-purpose seasoning
Bouillon stock cube
3 bay leaves

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Blend your tomatoes, red pepper, scotch bonnet peppers in a food processor or blender for about 45 seconds.

2. In a medium sized pot, heat your oil on medium-high heat. Once the oil is heated add the onions you set aside and fry just until they turn golden brown. Once the onions have turned brown add the tomato paste and fry for 2-3 minutes. Then add the blended tomato mixture (reserve about ¼ cup) and fry the mixture with the onions and tomato paste for about 30 minutes. Make sure you stir constantly so that the tomato mixture does not burn.
3. After 30 minutes, turn the heat down to medium, and add the chicken stock. Mix and add your seasonings (salt, curry powder, thyme, all-purpose seasoning, and the Knorr stock cube). Continue to boil for 10 minutes.
4. Add the pre-boiled rice to the pot. Mix it very well with the tomato stew. At this point if you need to add water so that the rice is level with the tomato mixture/chicken stock go ahead and do so. Add the bay leaves, cover the pot, and cook on medium to low heat for 15-30 minutes.
5. When the liquid has almost dried up add the remaining tomato stew, cover, and let it cook for another 5-10 minutes until the liquid has completely dried up. Turn off the heat, mix thoroughly, and your Jollof Rice is ready to be eaten!