International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume VI, Issue I, January 2022 | ISSN 2454–6186

Peace and Security- Essential Tools for National Development.

Nenger Iorkpen
The Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON), Topo-Badagry, Lagos State, Nigeria

Abstract
Peace and Security are considered all over the world as an avenue for national development. There can hardly be a consequential national development without peace and security in any nation. Ensuring peace and adequate security has to do with a wild range of practical efforts by all stakeholders be they government and civil society organizations functioning at various levels to ensure that the root causes of violence that seemed to be a threat to peace and national development are seriously addressed in a manner that people are free from fear of war, conflicts, kidnapping and all other social vices that deny them of their freedom. This paper, therefore tries to, examine peace and security as necessities for ingredients for ensuring peaceful societies and national development. This work also tries to discuss in detail some of the key concepts, challenges and suggested some way forward.
Keywords: Peace, Security, Essential Tools, National Development, Modern Organizations

INTRODUCTION
Peace and security are inevitable tools that call for political and socioeconomic development globally. These tools are also known to be agents of sustainable growth and development due to their significant role. In agreement with this fact, Omeriyang et al (2015) said, peace and security has been acknowledged all over the world as basic conditions necessary for sustainable national transformation. To this end, there is a consensus among scholars that there is a clear linkage between failures in governance, democratization and sustainable development on the one hand and insecurity and violent conflict on the other hand (Otive, 2010). The role of peace and security cannot be underestimated, considering the devastating consequences of political terror, civil and cold war, violence and armed conflicts which has brought setbacks to political and socioeconomic development of countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Nigeria, etc. The peace of these countries is mostly hampered by the activities of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria or The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (formerly known as al qaeda), Boko Haram, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, Haqqani Network, Kataib Hezbollah and Al Shabab among others.
The presence of political terror, civil and cold war, violence and armed conflicts in any country is attributed to lack of peace and security which in turn affects human lives and properties, political and socio-economical institutions that drives the development of any nation. Therefore, the absence of threats to peace and security in any nation will trigger its development, and once peace and security of a is sustained, their development too will be sustained. It is in this connection that in May 1999, Nigeria returns to civil rule with hopes and latent optimism to reposition development trajectories to sustainability. Unfortunately, this optimism seems to be a mirage as the development of Nigeria is negatively affected by Boko Haram, Banditry in most part of the Northern states in Nigeria, Boko Haram terrorist is not the only problem of the North, the resurgence of serious activities of the Bandits in the Northern states like Zanfara, Sokoto and recently Niger State in the north central with the Niger Delta Avengers in the South-South and Biafra agitators in the South-East Nigeria has been an impediment to peace and development of Nigeria as a nation.
The importance of peace security for national development has call for this paper, this work will examine the critical role the absence of violence, war and armed conflicts to national development. Areas to be covered are conceptual clarification, relevance of peace and security, challenges to peace and security stability, strategies for peacebuilding and security stability and conclusion.