SPSP Commends Outgoing National Working Committee for Dedicated Service (2022–2025)
The General Assembly of Society for Peace Studies and Practice (SPSP) has formally acknowledged the outstanding contributions of its outgoing National Working Committee (NWC), whose tenure began in 2022 and concluded at the Society’s 19th International Conference and General Assembly.
The society applauded the committees and described their tenure as three years of committed, visionary and impactful leadership that strengthened the Society’s institutional growth and professional relevance across Nigeria and beyond.
The outgoing leadership provided strategic direction during a critical period for peacebuilding practice and scholarship in Nigeria, strengthening the Society’s national and international visibility, professional relevance, and institutional stability.
The committee steered the affairs of the Society through a period marked by evolving security challenges, growing demand for professional peace practice, and the need for stronger global engagement, positioning SPSP as Nigeria’s foremost professional platform for peace scholars and practitioners.
Members of the Outgoing National Working Committee
President: Mr. Nathaniel Msen Igbazua Awuapila
Vice President (North): Prof. Jude Abdulkareem Momodu
Vice President (South): Dr. Obi Ndifon Neji
Secretary-General: Dr. Olanrewaju L. Yusuf
Ag. Assistant Secretary-General: Mrs. Oluwatosin R. Ojewale
Financial Secretary: Mrs. Grace Ladokun-Olaina
Treasurer: Mr. Chukwudi Sylvanus Nwoke
Publicity Secretary: Dr. Muhammad Kudu Abubakar
Welfare Officer: Dr. Adesiyan Victor Adetoyese
Ex-Officio I: Prof. Nathaniel Dominic Danjibo
Ex-Officio II: Dr. Adeola Adams

Throughout its three-year tenure, the NWC was distinguished by a rare blend of academic depth, professional practice, and policy engagement in peace and conflict studies.
At the helm of the outgoing administration was Mr. Nathaniel Msen Awuapila, fspsp, a seasoned peacebuilding strategist and the fourth President of SPSP. Elected in December 2022, Mr. Awuapila provided visionary leadership that significantly expanded the Society’s institutional reach and international relevance. 
Under his presidency, SPSP recorded historic milestones, including the establishment of its first international branch in Sierra Leone in 2023, followed by the launch of a Cameroon branch in 2024, later upgraded to a Regional Branch for Central Africa.
His administration also secured unprecedented global recognition for the Society. In November 2024, SPSP was admitted into the International Peace Bureau (IPB), the world’s oldest peace organization, while in June 2025 the Society attained Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). 
These achievements, alongside strategic partnerships with institutions such as the Nigerian Defence Academy and emerging collaborations with universities across Africa and Europe, marked a defining phase in SPSP’s evolution as a continental voice for peacebuilding scholarship and practice.
Serving as Vice President (North), Prof. Jude Abdulkareem Momodu, a Professor of Peace and Security Studies and Director at Modibbo Adama University, Yola, brought decades of experience in peacebuilding research, security sector training, and donor-funded conflict management projects across the North-East and Sahel region.
The Vice President (South), Dr. Obi Ndifon Neji, an accomplished peace scholar and former Sub-Dean at the University of Calabar, contributed strong academic leadership, drawing from his extensive expertise in alternative dispute resolution, election-related conflicts, and peace operations training.
As Secretary-General, Dr. Olanrewaju L. Yusuf played a central administrative and coordination role, leveraging his background in peace and conflict studies, environmental security, and mediation to strengthen the Society’s organisational processes and state chapter engagements nationwide.
The Society’s visibility and public engagement were significantly enhanced under the stewardship of Dr. Muhammad Kudu Abubakar, Publicity Secretary, a veteran broadcast journalist, retired Deputy Director of News at the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), and Fellow of both the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) and SPSP.
The Treasurer, Mr. Chukwudi Sylvanus Nwoke, a seasoned peace practitioner and mediator, ensured prudent financial management, bringing community-based peacebuilding experience and long-standing commitment to the Society’s ideals.
Providing welfare oversight was Dr. Adesiyan Victor Adetoyese, Associate Professor of Conflict Management at Babcock University, whose academic work and mentorship focus on peacebuilding, youth development, and conflict resolution.
The intellectual depth of the Committee was further strengthened by Prof. Nathaniel Dominic Danjibo, Ex-Officio I, a renowned scholar at the University of Ibadan and one of Africa’s leading voices on terrorism, religious extremism, and governance, whose research continues to shape policy and academic discourse.
Other members of the Committee, including Mrs. Oluwatosin R. Ojewale, Mrs. Grace Ladokun-Olaina, and Dr. Adeola Adams, contributed significantly through administrative support, research, and professional service that sustained the Society’s operations during the period under review.
Collectively, the outgoing National Working Committee is credited with strengthening SPSP’s institutional credibility, expanding professional engagement, and sustaining its mission of promoting excellence in peace studies and practice in Nigeria and beyond.
Members of the Society have described the 2022–2025 leadership as one that combined scholarship with practice, strengthened institutional credibility, and laid a solid foundation for the incoming administration.
As SPSP transitions into a new administrative cycle, members and stakeholders have commended the outgoing NWC for its dedication, professionalism, and enduring contributions to peacebuilding scholarship and practice.