From Umar Dankano, Yola
A Coalition of International Organisations, Oxfam, CRUDAN, YWYET, and CODERHI, has inaugurated grassroots committees saddled with the responsibility of handling community-led development programmes in their communities.
These committees were launched in two North-Eastern states, Adamawa and Borno, to initiate and supervise people-oriented projects across the political wards in the two selected local government areas, Guyuk council (Adamawa) and Biu LGA (Borno).
The event marked the culmination of weeks of training for committee members and featured award and certificate presentations to the best-performing Community Development Associations (CDAs) representing wards from the participating LGAs. The CDAs are competing for development grants, with top performers to be recognised and rewarded.
Speaking on the program, Oxfam Nigeria Country Director, Tijani Ahmed Hamza, explained that, the essence of the Ward Development Support Committee Grant Competition under the project was a “Support to Improving Social Cohesion through Community Development Planning.”
Hamza said the project promotes social cohesion and inclusive planning in the Northeast, where conflict, displacement and uncertainty have already weakened governance.
Hamza stated that, verified records have shown that,limited citizens’ participation in governance has led to interventions that do not fully reflect local needs in most of our communities.
“In the Northeast region, this is further compounded by years of conflict, fear and uncertainty, displacement, and socio-economic challenges,” Hamza said.
He noted that the project addresses these gaps by promoting inclusive, participatory planning and strengthening social cohesion across the LGAs.
“The grant competition is designed to provide financial incentives to support implementation of priority projects, thereby improving the lives of those most in need. The accountability framework encourages broader participation and promotes healthy innovation among communities,” he added.
CRUDAN’s Moses Alago said the new approach is participatory, involving farmers, civil servants, and security personnel to ensure community ownership of the chosen projects by the residents themselves.
Alago explained that, the partners’ role is: “We study the concerns of the people and communities, analyse their problems, and encourage them to find solutions together. Our aim is for people to take ownership of projects within their domain.”
Alago reiterated that the programme was launched by Oxfam, CRUDAN, YWYET and CODERHI with funding support from the EU and Germany, where trained committee members were awarded best-performing community associations competing for development grants.
In their separate goodwill messages, a permanent Secretary with the Adamawa state government, Amos Pribu and Bello Zunge Zawakwallo of Guyuk local council expressed gratitude to the organisers of the program saying that involving people in the planning process simplifies the government’s budgetary process.
“We are indeed pleased with the timely intervention and we appreciate”.They affirmed.
Participants representing various ward committees from both Biu and Guyuk expressed joy at the partners’ work describing them as “God sent” considering the ongoing hardship in the land.
Our Correspondent reported that the project was officially launched last week in both Biu and Guyuk by Oxfam, CRUDAN, YWYET, and CODERHI, with funding from the European Union as well as the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).