UNICEF, EU, Other Devt Partners Offer Abia Technical Support to Build Reliable Social Register

•As UNICEF, Katsina unveil committee to promote education

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia and Francis Sardauna in Katsina

Efforts to make Abia State have a reliable social register have commenced following technical assistance offered by the UNICEF, which implements the EU Support for Sustainable and Innovative Social Protection Programmes (SUSI) in Nigeria.

The Abia government acknowledged the importance of this support at a workshop in Umuahia, organised by UNICEF to acquaint Abia officials with the technicalities of gathering and storing and updating data on social security.

In another development, UNICEF in collaboration with the Katsina State Government has unveiled a joint education sector coordination committee to promote education policy formulation and implementation in the state.

The committee, headed by the state Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Zainab Musawa, will also facilitate joint planning, budgeting and resource mobilization for effective education activities.

Presenting the terms of reference of the committee at an inaugural meeting in Katsina Wednesday, the Officer-in-charge, UNICEF Kano Field Office, Michael Banda, said it will improve data sharing and evidence-based decision making in the state.

Meanwhile, the Abia State Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection, Mrs. Ngozi Blessing Felix, said that Abia has been working hard since 2023 to ensure that the state register was updated.

“We’ve been working with relevant agencies, especially NASSCO (National Social Safety Net Coordinating Office) to update Abia’s social register,” she said.
According to her, the state made a headway “when we reached out to the EU (European Union) and Abia was selected among the pilot states to benefit from the SUSI programme.

Mrs. Felix stated that the ultimate goal of updating the state social register was to ensure that the targeted people in any social intervention would be reached without any hitch.

Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Mr. Kingsley Anosike, made it plain that without a good data base “it becomes difficult” to deliver social interventions, adding that social register is a live process hence the need to keep updating it.

He said that Abia presently has 240 poor and vulnerable households with an average of five persons per household but an update has become necessary with the number of years that have lapsed.

A UNICEF consultant, Nard Huijbregts, who is a researcher at the Economic Policy Research Institute(EPRI) Cape Town, South Africa affirmed that the development partners were committed to help Abia improve its social register.

He said that a reliable data base was necessary to build a sustainable social protection system, adding that it starts in a gradual process as was the case in South Africa, which has now attained a well-developed system of social protection.

Speaking with newsmen, Mr. Victor Chima, the Social Policy Officer, UNICEF, Enugu Field Office, explained that the technical support offered by the international agency was specifically aimed at ensuring the social register was updated in Abia.

He said that social protection system exists at both federal and state levels through cash transfers and other targeted interventions to lift people out of poverty.
The social policy officer also stated that UNICEF was also supporting Abia to judiciously utilise its budget across sectors to ensure that everyone have access to social services.

Chima stated that it was expected that by 2027 more people in Nigeria would have access to social protection through the implementation of the EU SUSI programme.

Meanwhile, the meeting between UNICEF and Katsina State was organised by the state ministry of basic and secondary education with support from the United Nations Children’s Fund and other development partners.

Banda said the committee will monitor the Katsina Education Sector Operation Plan and ensure accountability and transparency in education service delivery of the state.

“The committee will also promote collaboration between ministries, departments, agencies, development partners, civil society and other stakeholders.
“Provide a platform for policy dialogue, coordination and joint decision making. Ensure alignment with state education priorities, SDGs, and education sector plans”, he added.

He reiterated that the United Nations Children’s Fund will support the committee for the period of one year, warning its members against negligence.
In her remarks, the commissioner for basic and secondary education, Musawa, announced plans by the state government to establish an Education Trust Fund to boost investment in the state’s education sector.

She explained that the education trust fund will ensure sustainability, and enhance constant investment in education to complement the government’s efforts of revitalising the sector.

“The establishment of an education trust fund is in the process and it aims at ensuring sustainability and steady investment in the education sector”, the commissioner said.

She added that the state government has constructed and renovated over 200 schools, while three modern schools are undergoing construction in each of the three senatorial zones of the state.

She however said insecurity has undermined the state government’s efforts in the education sector, leading to school relocation and declining enrollment drive.
She stressed that insecurity and other challenges are disrupting learning, widening educational gaps and threatening the future of children in the state.
“Despite recruitment, rural schools still need more qualified and committed teachers. While progress has been made, many communities still await school renovations, furniture and learning materials.

“Our needs remain greater than the resources available, requiring innovation in mobilizing and efficiently utilizing funds”, Musawa said.