The Kaduna State Social Protection Accountability Coalition (KADSPAC) on Wednesday commended the state for developing a Social Protection Policy to address the plight of the poor and the vulnerable.
The chairperson of the coalition, Ms Jessica Bartholomew, gave the commendation in Kaduna during a town hall meeting organised to get inputs from members of the public and other relevant stakeholders.
Bartholomew described the development as a crucial step towards eliminating extreme poverty and addressing the plight of the vulnerable.
According to her, the public hearing is an indication of the “people-centred” governance of the state administration.
She described KADSPAC as a network of active civil society and media partners working to strengthen transparency and accountability in the social protection system in the State.
She said that the coalition, with the support of Save the Children International, has the goal of improving coordination and delivery of social protection programmes in the state.
She stressed the need for transparency in the selection of beneficiaries of social protection programmes, improving awareness creation and putting in place monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to check fraud.
“There should also be community engagement from the formulation to implementation of social protection programmes to build the needed trust on government and engender citizens participation.
“Government should also ensure timely release of funds for full implementation of programmes and projects to address some of the basic causes of insecurity, poor health and nutrition, child marriage,” she said.
Similarly, Mr Emmanuel Bonet of the Coalition of Concerned Civil Society Organisations in the state described social protection schemes as important tools in reducing poverty and inequality.
According to him, the policy when developed will significantly contribute to economic growth by raising labour productivity and enhancing social stability.
“Civil societies in Kaduna state act as the fulcrum in social protection as most of the primary target populations that CSOs served are the vulnerable, the poor and people living with a disability.
“There are also the marginalised, those in hard-to-reach areas or the rural poor among others.
“Therefore, conducting a public hearing is a strong demonstration of good leadership and an affirmation to stakeholders that their views will go into a public programme for implementation.
“The Open Government Partnership, through the co-creation principle offers a platform that promotes collaboration, which in turn increases trust and ultimately makes coordination a lot easier.”
Bonet equally said that quality data was central to the success of any social protection program, adding that it helps in analysis, reducing duplication of beneficiaries, prioritisation and evidenced-based planning.
He also identified effective coordination as crucial to the success of any social protection policy.