COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF THE STAKEHOLDERS’ SUMMIT OF THE IGALA CULTURAL AND DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (ICDA) WITH THE THEME CONSENSUS BUILDING: THE RIGHT PATH TO ACHIEVING UNITY FOR A GREATER IGALA KINGDOM HELD IN THE COUNCIL HALL OF THE FEDERAL POLYTECHNIC IDAH ON THE 16TH AUGUST 2025
Preamble:
The Igala Cultural and Development Association (ICDA), the apex socio-cultural body of the Igala people held an Igala Stakeholders’ Summit with the above theme in the Council Hall of the Federal Polytechnic Idah on Saturday 16th August 2025.
The summit which attracted prominent sons and daughters of Igala extraction from all works of life, including ICDA Executives, retired Military Officers, traditional rulers, representatives of various socio-cultural organizations, the intelligentsia, Youth and Women organizations, religious leaders etc. critically examined the increasing security challenges, socio-economic issues, infrastructural deficits, cultural and other issues confronting the Igala ethnic nationality and arrived at the following resolutions that represent the broad consensus reached at the summit :
1. The Summit agreed that consensus building being a general agreement, shared understanding and use of dialogue in arriving at common grounds on common issues, is a panacea for disunity and for promoting rapid development of the Igala nation.
2. The need to uphold the dignity of the Igala people in accordance with our common values as a people was agreed upon.
3. In order to actualize our desire for infrastructural development, the summit agreed to advocate for and support projects that are beneficial to entire Igala land and her people.
4. The Summit called on ICDA being the umbrella body of all the socio-cultural groups to synergize with other socio-cultural organizations in the land in order to restore and sustain the glory of Igala land in the comity of ethnic nationalities in Nigeria.
5. That in our quest to attain consensus, we need to acknowledge and appreciate Igala sons and daughters who have in one way or the other contributed to the development of Igala land.
6. It was agreed that beyond politics, consensus should be built around other critical arears such as declining educational standards, the declining attention to agriculture that was once the main stay of traditional Igala homes and economy, the debilitating effects of illegal and unregulated mining in Igala land, ecological challenges and other social services.
7. The summit laid the foundation for continuous engagements among the Igalas both at home and in diaspora, social interactions and productive collaborations with other nationalities as a strategy for catalyzing socio-economic development of Igala land.
8. In the collective interest of Igala people, the summit calls for consensus building across political and social interests to renew our impetus towards growth and development of Igala land and the State.
9. In order to elicit trust and confidence amongst our people, the summit calls for compromises through consensus on contentious issues that are capable of generating disunity among Igala people and endangering our common quest for socio-economic development of Igala land.
10. It was agreed that the Igalas must build consensus around traditional, political, and cultural issues at all times in order to avoid internal conflicts.
11. Stakeholders are encouraged to engage in regular and truthful dialogues through open communication devoid of vaulting individual interests, parochial sentiments and personal acrimony.
12. That the issue of deep-rooted moral decadence prevalent in Igala land be fundamentally addressed through proper home training, moral regeneration and economic empowerment of our youths.
13. It was agreed that a summit be organised for the re-orientation of our Youths on the need to shun negative attitudes and practices that could dent the image of the Igala person and kingdom especially on the social media such as facebook, Tiktok, Whatsapp and X (i.e Twitter). The ICDA leadership is to take the initiative.
14. That we should as a people thrive to ensure that leadership and positions of trust are entrusted in the best and trusted hands of Igala sons and daughters at all times through merit-based selection process.
15. The need to encourage all Igala sons and daughters to engage in agriculture both to address the problems of food insecurity in Igala land and enhance the socio-economic fortunes of the Igala people was equally agreed.
16. Security agents, stakeholders and traditional institutions are enjoined to collaborate in taking proactive steps to arrest incessant and escalating security threats in Igala land and the State.
17. The summit also noted that industrialization through infrastructural development based on government-communal cooperation is paramount to uplifting our communities from the shackles of under-development and socio-economic retardation.
18. The summit also noted with utmost concerns, the significant level of environmental degradation and health hazards being wrought on many Igala communities by mineral exploration and exploitation activities in places like Odagbo-Okaba in Ankpa Local Government Area, as well as Adumu, Ig’ebije and environs in Ofu Local Government Areas of Kogi State and enjoined both the Federal and State Governments to intensify efforts to arrest the unhealthy activities both in the interests of concerned communities and Kogi State at large.
19. The summit called for the establishment of Kogi East Trust Fund to address the development challenges facing our area.
CONCLUSION:
The members and leadership of the ICDA wishes to thank all the attendees from within and outside Nigeria, including our well-wishers profoundly for their active participation and contributions that made the summit a great success. The high-level of participation (recording over three hundred attendees) at the summit is a great encouragement to the new leadership of the ICDA. We believe that with sustained dialogue, collaboration and unflinching support for the resolutions reached, the new leadership of ICDA will further be strengthened to ensure that the Igalas will take their rightful positions in the comity of ethnic nationalities of Nigeria.
May God bless Igala land.
Dr. A.A Abdulai,
President, ICDA.
Chief Rufai Yahaya,
Secretary – General,
ICDA.
