Determined to overcome the multifarious developmental challenges facing them, the governors from the Northwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria have appealed to the United Nations (UN) to support their states.
The Chairman of the Northwest Governors Forum and Katsina State Governor, Malam Dikko Radda, made the appeal in Abuja at the weekend, when he led other governors in the zone on a courtesy visit to the United Nations’ Country Team led by the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Mohamed Malick Fall, at the UN House Abuja.
The governors at the forum include the governor of Kaduna State, Senator Uba Sani; the governor of Kano State, Engr. Abba Kabir Yusuf; Jigawa State Governor, Mallam Umar Namadi; Sokoto State Deputy Governor, Alhaji Idris Muhammad Gobir; and Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal,
According to Radda, the major challenges faced by the region include insecurity, multidimensional poverty, a large population of out-of-school children, increased cases of illicit drug abuse, high child and maternal mortality, and large-scale youth unemployment.
In a statement, National Information Officer, UN Information Centre (UNIC), Dr. Oluseyi Soremekun, said the governors also pointed out that nearly 80% of the population derive their livelihoods from agriculture. However, they face the challenges of land degradation and climate change which has reduced their yields.
Radda also also berated high level of child malnutrition, stressing that the governors were committed to providing a strong political base needed to ensure UN interventions in the Northwest are implemented with the required speed.
“The only way we can surmount the challenges of Northwest is through a regional approach which demands that we work together in a coordinated manner. We need to collectively fight poverty and unemployment being the major root causes of insecurity in the region,” he said.
The UN Resident Coordinator, Mohamed Malick Fall, expressed delight at receiving six of the seven governors in the zone.
He assured that the United Nations would support the Northwest region to address the development challenges.
Fall also noted that with the varied high levels of multidimensional poverty, the sustainable development goals would only be achieved in Nigeria if the northwest got it right and would in
turn impact positively on the African region.
“The UN in Nigeria is encouraged to see the strong leadership and commitment of Northwest Governors to improving the wellbeing of their people. We will continue to support the government and people of Northwest Nigeria. Together, we will rescue and accelerate the agenda 2030 for sustainable development in the region,” he said.
The resident coordinator informed the governors that the UN had embarked on the acceleration of the achievement of the SDGs through a focus on six key areas, including food systems, education, social protection and jobs, energy access, climate change, and digital transformation.
Dr Soremekun disclosed that the meeting had agreed that a roadmap for action would be developed by technical teams from the UN and the seven states, through a framework of UN support to the region.
