Lake Chad Basin: Youth-led stabilisation amid a pandemic

The report highlights the critical role of youth-led organisations, particularly the YoNeLCR, in fostering resilience and peacebuilding in communities affected by the Boko Haram insurgency in Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria. It finds that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly hindered these efforts by limiting face-to-face community interaction and reducing donor funding, with some programme implementation dropping to less than 20% of usual levels. The document argues against the narrative of youth as merely victims or perpetrators, showcasing their roles as peace messengers, ICT innovators, and CSO leaders. It recommends that the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) and African Union (AU) create formal plans to integrate youth-led organisations into regional stabilisation strategies.

• The COVID-19 pandemic severely disrupted youth-led peacebuilding in the Lake Chad Basin by restricting the human interaction essential for community-based work, leading to a significant drop in programme implementation to less than 20% of normal levels.
• Virtual engagement is not a viable substitute for in-person peacebuilding in the region due to a lack of community buy-in and insufficient technological infrastructure in rural areas.
• Donor funding for youth-led entities decreased during the pandemic, forcing some organisations to pivot their activities toward health issues to ensure operational survival.
• Youth in the region actively resist Boko Haram recruitment by serving as peace messengers, using ICT for early-warning tools, and leading community-driven initiatives such as sports clubs to enhance social cohesion.
• There is a growing willingness among youth-led organisations to collaborate with the African Union and the Lake Chad Basin Commission to benefit their communities.

APA

Kujeke, M., & Odinukwe, A. G. (2021). Lake Chad Basin: Youth-led stabilisation amid a pandemic. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/TfP pb June 2021.pdf

Chicago

Kujeke, Muneinazvo, and Alvin G Odinukwe. Lake Chad Basin: Youth-led stabilisation amid a pandemic. Institute for Security Studies, 2021. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/TfP pb June 2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Kujeke |first1=Muneinazvo |last2=Odinukwe |first2=Alvin G |title=Lake Chad Basin: Youth-led stabilisation amid a pandemic |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=June 2021 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/TfP pb June 2021.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{kujeke2021lake, author = {Kujeke, Muneinazvo and Odinukwe, Alvin G}, title = {{Lake Chad Basin: Youth-led stabilisation amid a pandemic}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/TfP pb June 2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }