The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has urged policymakers and practitioners to strengthen Nigeria’s social protection systems through evidence-based policies and coordinated implementation strategies.

ILO country director to Nigeria, Vanessa Phala, made the call at the opening of an eight-day capacity-building workshop for policymakers on Monday in Abuja.

The workshop, organised by ILO and UNICEF with funding from the European Union, aims to deepen Nigeria’s social protection framework through the Transform Training of Trainers (TOT) initiative.

Ms Phala said the training was to empower policymakers and practitioners to take ownership of social protection delivery in a sustainable and inclusive way.

She added, “We have done a lot in supporting the development and revision of Nigeria’s social protection policy. But now, we are focusing on building people who will drive the process.”

Ms Phala explained that ILO and UNICEF were implementing social protection projects in Abia, Sokoto, Oyo, and Benue to ensure context-driven systems that are responsive to citizens’ needs.

The country director said, “Our collaboration with UNICEF ensures that interventions are locally relevant. We want every policy and programme to reflect the realities of Nigerians.

“The training would help close capacity gaps among practitioners and enable them to translate policies into practical actions that improve social welfare outcomes.

“This initiative is about turning policy from paper to practice. It’s about giving Nigerians the competence to implement social protection that truly changes lives.”

Felix Mwenge, the ILO Africa coordinator for Transform, said the training would create a network of skilled trainers to sustain and replicate learning across the country.

He said, “We are building a system that trains its own trainers. This is how we deepen knowledge, ownership, and long-term sustainability of social protection in Nigeria.”

Mr Mwenge also said the initiative was part of the African effort to institutionalise social protection capacity and ensure countries build resilient, knowledge-based systems.

“Our goal is to strengthen local expertise so that every country, including Nigeria, can sustain social protection without relying on external support,” he said.

Emmanuel Danjuma, the project manager of the ILO-UNICEF initiative, said the training formed part of the Supporting Sustainable Social Protection Systems (SUSI) project funded by the European Union.

He explained that “the SUSI project builds the capacity of policymakers and implementers in Abia, Benue, Oyo, Sokoto, and at the federal level in Abuja to manage social protection effectively.”

(NAN)