Exploring the Place of 4ir in Preventing and Addressing Ethnoreligious Conflict in Nigeria

The ethnoreligious crises confronting Nigeria have made efforts of the government to the nation yield no or little results. Religious fanatics, who have been destroying lives and property, compound this problem. This article explores how 4IR technologies can prevent and address ethnoreligious conflict in Nigeria. The article shows that the violence is caused by the post-colonial state's inability to protect and improve the lives of its citizens without using ethnic and religious resources, power imbalances, and colonial legacies. However, integrating 4IR technologies into ethnoreligious conflict prevention and mitigation offers the government and stakeholders the chance to enhance early warning of emerging violence and prevention. Blockchain technology, big data analytics, and artificial intelligence can assist the government and stakeholders to predict upheavals by monitoring sociopolitical developments. Considering this, we should establish a specialised centre that focuses on early warning and response and employs analytical methods to identify emerging violence before crises worsen. This will assist the government and stakeholders in addressing public complaints efficiently. More specifically, there is a need to partner with local and national civil society organisations and academic institutions to ensure that different perspectives inform responses while improving the government's and stakeholders' sociopolitical understanding.