The United Nations Children’s Fund has emphasised the need for greater financial investment in social sectors to tackle the issue of multidimensional poverty that impedes overall development in the country.

The chief of UNICEF’s Sokoto field office, Michael Juma, made the call at a five-day workshop on Monday in Sokoto.

The workshop was organized by the Sokoto State Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, with support from UNICEF through the European Union’s Sustainable and Innovative Social Protection Project.

The workshop focused on developing three-year Medium-Term Sector Strategies 2026-2028 for health, education, social protection, and water, sanitation, and hygiene in Sokoto.

Mr Juma said that even with an increase in annual budgets by different states, poverty and the lack of basic services are still rising, especially among vulnerable households in Northern Nigeria.

“This troubling trend of multidimensional and learning poverty has escalated over the years and requires collective action by the government, private sector, and community members for it to be addressed,” he said.

While commending the Sokoto State government for its commitment to social protection programs, Mr Juma appealed for increased financial provisions and the effective implementation of budgets aimed at child-focused initiatives.

He stressed that the initiatives should include cash transfers, social health insurance, prevention of malnutrition, and support for out-of-school children.

He also restated the importance of creating a conducive environment for basic healthcare and education services.

Mr Juma called on the Sokoto State government to effectively leverage the support it was receiving in its commitment to transitioning from traditional mode budgeting to programme-based budgeting, a shift that UNICEF was assisting in nine states across the federation.

In his remarks, the state commissioner of budget and economic planning, Abubakar Zayyana, commended UNICEF for its continued support to the state aimed at helping it achieve its development goals.

Mr Zayyana emphasised that ministry, department, and agency budgets should align with the government’s nine-point smart agenda through programme-based budgeting.

He noted that ambiguous budgets or those designed without proper planning would no longer be acceptable.

The commissioner noted the importance of programme-based budgeting in achieving desired goals and emphasised the need for teamwork to move the state to greater heights.

The commissioner for health, Faruk Wurno, urged the directors of planning of the ministry and its parastatals to make good projections based on the objectives and programmes of the ministry.

“This will enable the development of a realistic, purposeful, and evidence-based budget for the 2026 fiscal year,” he said.

Mr. Wurno described the MTSS as a critical step in improving the state’s budget and warned that any submitted budget proposal not aligned with the ministry’s objectives and programmes would not be included.

(NAN)