North-West Governors Commit to Social Protection, Child Poverty Reduction
By Auwal Abdullah
Governors of Nigeria’s North-West region have committed to strengthening social protection systems and accelerating efforts to reduce multidimensional poverty affecting children and women across the region.
The resolution followed a high-level policy dialogue in Kano convened by the North-West Governors’ Forum in partnership with the Office of the Vice President, the European Union, UNICEF, and other development partners.
The two-day engagement brought together Vice President Kashim Shettima, governors, federal officials, traditional and religious leaders, the private sector, youth representatives, and development partners to address persistent poverty and vulnerability in the region.
With an estimated population of about 60 million, the North-West continues to record some of the highest poverty indicators in Nigeria.
More than half of children are out of school, while millions of households face overlapping challenges in education, healthcare, nutrition, water, sanitation, and income security.
The discussions focused on increasing social support, making sure everyone can access quality education and healthcare, and finding new ways to fund help for vulnerable groups, especially those affected by displacement and security issues.
At the end of the meeting, the governors adopted a joint communiqué, vowing to scale up child-focused social protection interventions, strengthen service delivery systems, and increase domestic funding for poverty reduction programmes.
A monitoring framework and implementation roadmap were also endorsed to ensure accountability and measurable outcomes.
Chairman of the North-West Governors’ Forum and Governor of Katsina State, Dikko Umaru Radda, represented by his deputy, said the region now has a structured framework to guide investments in human capital development.
Vice President Shettima called for sustained coordination and results-driven implementation, while EU Ambassador Gautier Mignot and UNICEF Nigeria Representative Wafaa Saeed urged stronger financing and urgent action to improve outcomes for vulnerable children.
UNICEF reaffirmed its commitment to support implementation and ensure that every child in the North-West region has access to essential services and protection across the region.
