In a landmark policy dialogue held in Gombe state, the six North-east states of Nigeria have resolved to increase budgetary allocations for child-sensitive sectors, including education, health, nutrition, social protection, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).
This was contained in a communique issued at the end of the dialogue, signed by Commissioners of Budget Planning and Economic of six states in North-east zone and made available to our correspondent in Gombe.
The dialogue, organised under the Public Financing for Children (Pf4C) initiative is to address the region’s critical challenges in delivering effective services to children and women.
At the event, stakeholders identified a series of pressing issues, including inadequate funding for social sectors, high child mortality rates, malnutrition, and the growing number of out-of-school children.
In his keynote address, the deputy governor of Gombe state stated the need for increased government commitment.
A key highlight of the discussion was the need to strengthen data management, improve human resources in healthcare, and provide better family support through conditional cash transfers, free education, and access to healthcare schemes for the vulnerable.
Stakeholders at the meeting called on governments in the region to boost budgetary allocations for the social sector by at least 2% annually and called for enhanced multi-sectoral collaboration to improve service delivery for children and women.
The dialogue concluded with a commitment from state governments to implement the recommended actions, ensuring a brighter future for the region’s most vulnerable populations.