The United Nations Children Funds (UNICEF) has pushed for increased  investment in sectors that directly affect children and vulnerable households in Katsina State.

The Chief of the UNICEF Field Office, Kano, Rahama Farah, made the call at the opening of a seven-day workshop organised for Katsina government officials in Kaduna.

The training focused on Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Medium-Term Sector Strategies (MTSS) Development.

Mr Farah urged the state government to translate evidence-based priorities into real investments that improve the lives of children and vulnerable households.

He commended the Katsina State government for strengthening its planning and budgeting systems.

He stated, “Recently, we jointly developed and disseminated a budget advocacy brief for Katsina, which highlighted key financing gaps and priority investment areas, particularly in sectors that directly affect children and vulnerable households.

“These MTEF and MTSS processes provide a unique and timely opportunity to translate those evidence-based recommendations into medium-term plans, sector strategies, and credible budgets.

“The MTEF and MTSS are not just compliance documents; they are strategic tools that determine what gets prioritised, funded, and ultimately delivered. When aligned with policy priorities and grounded in realistic fiscal projections, they strengthen accountability, improve service delivery, and enhance development.”

According to him, for Katsina, where children constitute a large share of the population, getting these frameworks right is fundamental to protecting investments in health, nutrition, education, social protection, and resilience.

He added that, “These investments are not only social imperatives; they are essential to building human capital and sustaining long-term development.

“UNICEF remains fully committed to supporting the state government with data, technical assistance, and global best practices to strengthen child-responsive, inclusive, and shock-sensitive budgeting.

“We encourage all participants to deliberately integrate the findings of the Budget Advocacy Brief into sector priorities, costing, and expenditure decisions throughout this workshop.”

Also, the state’s Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Malik Anas, said that the documents served as strategic tools that linked Governor Dikko Radda’s “Building Your Future Policy Priorities” to available resources.

He added that it also linked the administration with enhanced fiscal sustainability, ensuring that public expenditures were aligned with the state’s development goals.

“The MTEF will provide a credible platform for aggregate fiscal discipline and predictability in resource allocation over a three-year horizon.

“The Fiscal Strategy Paper will articulate the state’s macro-fiscal outlook, revenue strategies, and expenditure priorities,” he said.

According to him, the MTSS will enable the state to translate these priorities into sector-specific, costed programmes and projects. 

(NAN)