By Murtala Muhammad
Canadian High Commission in Nigeria and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have over the years been implementing developmental programmes in Bauchi State through various investments in healthcare, education, agriculture and economic development.
The interventions were aimed at improving.the state’s indices in the sectors, to include immunisation, nutrition, maternal and child health, schools enrollment, leadership, gender equity, Village Savings and Loans, psychosocial support, dialogue, menstrual hygiene management among others.
To ensure accountability and sustainability of these interventions, a monitoring team led by the Head of Development Cooperation, Global Affairs Canada (GAC) High Commission in Nigeria, Mr Arash Irantalah recently paid a four-day working visit to Bauchi state and engaged different stakeholders Bauchi, Dass and Darazo local government areas.
The team on its first day of the assessment visit, had a chat with the state government’s representatives at the Polio Emergency Operation Centre, where the Commissioner for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Sani Mohammed and the Executive Chairman of the State Primary Health Care Board, Dr Rilwanu Mohammed highlighted efforts, particularly on policy and service delivery.
During an interaction with the Emir of Dass, the GAC–UNICEF Team Lead, Mr Arash Irantalah acknowledged the traditional institutions’ contribution in community mobilisation and improved indices in different areas of intervention.
Mr Irantalah who said the GAC–UNICEF collaboration with the state government, traditional institutions and other stakeholders in different sectors of intervention were fruitful, emphasised the need for sustainability from the state actors.
In his response, the Emir of Dass, Alhaji Usman Bilyaminu Othman noted the impact of GAC–UNICEF interventions to citizens’ lives, especially in the state’s healthcare delivery system, ranging form policy formulation, technical support and implementation of various programmes.
The team also interacted with the Emir of Darazo, Alhaji Ibrahim Bababa, where he commended the GAC-funded support, implemented by UNICEF in ensuring community mobilisation for improved healthcare, being championed by community resource groups.
These groups include Mama2Mama and Fathers For Good Health, utilising opportunities such as house-to-house mobilisation, marriage or naming ceremony gatherings to sensitise women and men on good health practices and economic development programmes, for improved households’ livelihood.
Other groups the GAC–UNICEF team interacted with, were Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) in Bauchi local government area, Champions of Change, comprising adolescent girls and boys and Inter-personal Therapy Groups (IPTGs) in Dass local government area.
The team also during the monitoring visit engaged with the students of Government Girls’ College (GGC), where the girls demonstrated local cuisines that they made using homegrown ingredients as part of commitment to encourage intake of locally available nutritious food.
The delegation was taken round the school’s garden for an exhibition, as the Team Lead, Mr Irantalah appreciated the students’ effort, urging sustainability and expansion of such projects to expose more students into growing local food varieties.
The students expressed delight for the visit and interaction with the GAC–UNICEF team, calling for sustained support to enhance community resilience for sustainable development.
On the last day of the visit, the GAC–UNICEF mission interacted with two entrepreneurs, one in Durum Community and the other in Bauchi metropolis, supported by the GAC funded MEDA Nigeria Way.
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