- Safiu Kehinde
Stakeholders across the Northern region have called for the Federal Government’s intervention over the spate of Almajiris and out-of-school kids across the region.
The stakeholders made the call at the just concluded 2-day interactive session on Government-Citizen Engagement hosted by the Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Foundation (SABMF).
The event, themed “Assessing electoral promises: Fostering Government-Citizen Engagement for National Unity” , had in attendance the Chairman of the Governors’ Forum, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, who represented President Bola Tinubu.
Vice President, Kashim Shettima was also represented by Dr. Aliyu Modibbo Umar, Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties (Office of the Vice President).
Several other representatives of the Federal Government, led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume were also present at the event which was held from 29th July to 30th July at the Arewa House, Kaduna State, with Governor Uba Sani as the Chief Host.
As contained in a communique issued at the end of the event by the SABMF Director-General,Dr. Abubakar Umar, the stakeholders had in a critical dialogue with the public identified the problem of Almajiri and out-of-school children as a persistent key concern of Northern Nigeria.
They had in their resolution urged the federal government to make substantial investment in education to address the out-of-school children crisis, especially in the North.
While commending the government for demonstrating openness to dialogue and continuous citizen engagement, the stakeholders also sought regional collaboration among Northern states to drive greater interface with the federal government.
The keynote address, delivered by Professor Tijjani Mohammed Bande, underscored critical regional and national challenges, which, he said, were not in isolation of international events.
Citing examples with other countries Tijjani said Nigeria has shown resilience in tackling insecurity, poverty, and educational deficits.
He advised the North to develop mechanism negotiating its interest within Nigeria that should be anchored on holistic national development goals.
The stakeholders further called for increased and accelerated infrastructural development in Nigeria.
They also sought strengthen agricultural value chains, livestock development and establish agro-allied industries for economic diversifications amongst others.
The summit concluded that Northern Nigeria acknowledges and commends the administration’s high performance in fulfilling its electoral promises in many areas and also appreciates subsisting challenges.
Participants called for more commitment to transparency, fairness and equity as elements that would foster national unity and sustenance of our democracy.
They further called for continued collaboration among government, citizens, and all stakeholders as the surest path to peace, justice, and prosperity in Nigeria.
The interactive session reflected Northern Nigeria’s position, emphasizing the region’s central role in sustaining Nigeria’s political stability and economic growth, and recognizing its over overwhelming electoral support to the victory of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The session also featured plenary discussions across thematic areas of National Security, Governance and Economy, Agriculture and Food Security, Infrastructure Development, and Human Capital Development.
Stakeholders commended the government’s high and commendable performance in fulfilling many of his electoral promises, particularly in security, infrastructure, and economic reforms.
According to the communique, the event brought together government officials, security agencies, civil society organizations, academics, traditional and religious leaders, private sector representatives, and development partners to deliberate on electoral promises, governance, and strategies to strengthen citizen engagement for national unity.
In attendance, also, were the leaderships of the Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Foundation, led by HE Muazu Babangida Aliyu, CON and the Arewa Consultative Forum, led by Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, wazirin Dutse.
The Foundation, in addition to its opening remark, acknowledged the graciousness of President Bola Tinubu in sending a high-powered delegation to the interaction, continuing the tradition of engagement that began with the October 17, 2022 session, as part of engagement with the 2023 presidential candidates.