The Muslim World League has launched an initiative aimed at countering extremist discourse in West Africa, with Muslim and Christian leaders from across the region signing a series of cooperation agreements at an international conference in Abuja. The gathering, held under the patronage of Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, brought together religious leaders alongside government officials and civil society representatives.
Delegates adopted the Abuja Declaration by consensus, setting out a joint action plan for government institutions, religious leaders and civil society organisations to work together on conflict prevention and counter-extremist narratives. The declaration also approved expanding educational, training and media programmes linked to the Makkah Charter, a framework for religious cooperation.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, the Muslim World League's secretary-general, said the initiative was designed to address the root causes of extremist ideas through binding agreements between the parties. Four memorandums of understanding were signed between Muslim and Christian organisations: the Muslim World League and Nigeria's Interfaith Mediation Centre; Jamaat Izalat al-Bid'a wa Iqamat as-Sunna and the Council of Christian Religious Leaders in Northern Nigeria; Jamaat Nasr al-Islam and the Christian Youth Initiative for Peace and Development; and the Union of Ahl al-Sunna Organisations and the Alliance of Progressive Pastors.
A new Coordinating Body for Religious and Civil Leaders and Institutions in West Africa was established to oversee implementation of the agreements, coordinate programmes and conduct regular progress assessments. President Tinubu met Al-Issa at the presidential palace and confirmed his backing for the declaration and its implementing programmes.
The initiative comes as West Africa faces significant security challenges from extremist groups including Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin and the so-called Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, whose attacks have killed thousands and displaced millions across the Sahel over the past decade. Nigeria has battled Boko Haram and its offshoot, the Islamic State West Africa Province, since 2009, with the violence repeatedly seeking to sow discord between Muslim and Christian communities.
