USAID Trains MDAs, CSOs On Citizens Engagement In Policy Planning
-By Ibrahim Abubakar Adamawa
The United State Agency International Development (USAID) state2state has trained Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) as well as Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) on citizens engagement and participatory planning policy in Adamawa.
Speaking at the training in Yola, Hajiya Maryam Dikko, State2State team lead, said aim of the training is to improved service delivery through citizens engagement for transparency and accountability.
Dikko who was represented by Mr Emmanuel Bwala, citizen engagement and capacity building expert urged the participants to step down the training for more people to be knowledgeable and for the development of the state.
“You are all officers representing government and citizens of the state at various levels, so let contribute our own part so that we can move the state forward.
“The essence of our coming together is to get the knowledge and to ensure that we share with those that were not here.
“For instance we are now 40 each of us if we step down the training to at least 10 people the multiplayer effect will go very far”, she advised.
According to her, with such effort the objectives of the training would be achieved within a short period.
Ms Suzanne Myada, Public Financial Management Specialist, USAID, said the objectives of the training were to promote participatory planning through integration of Community Development Plans (CDPs) into state and LG budgets.
“To mainstream citizen engagement, gender inclusion and conflict sensitivity in MDA budget processes.
“And to influence improved service delivery through increased budget allocation and releases for primary healthcare, basic education, and WASH,” she said.
According to her, the MDAs, CSOs and the media have vital role and responsibility through collaborative effort and coordination mechanism to record more success.
In her presentation, Ms Magdalene Michael, Communication Specialist State2State, tasked participants on effective communication for good results before, during and after the citizens engagement.
She said that citizens have a say on what to be executed for them as it brings more development and the governments may even spend less.
She tasked CSOs on the need to be proactive and to promote the need of the citizens for government’s consideration for more development in the state.
Marry Paninga, Executive Chairman Adamawa Planning Commission, commended the State2State for the remarkable intervention on governance and all other aspects in the state.
She said all the areas intervened were gradually recording a lot of success.
Paninga called on the CSOs to make their members across the 21 LGAs of the state be their eye openers at the grassroots.
Also, Ms Muniratu Jibrin, Executive Director, Mujib Hope Foundation and member Adamawa Good Governance Group, described the training as excellent in promoting transparency and accountability.
“The training is very important because it enlightens a lot of CSOs like us on how best we can air our views in line with expenditures of the state to ensure it is well accountable.
“It is also an eye opener on how to advocate for what we want in terms of expenditures of the state through media, interaction with the state government and also reaching out to grassroots to receive their needs and to relate it to government as well,”, she said.
