Zamfara: CSOs, Media Practitioners Belittle 2024 Budget Over Deficiencies in Education, Health
From Ibrahim Kaulahi, Gusau
A coalition of civil society and media practitioners under the auspices of Zamfara State Coalition to Ending Child Poverty (ZACOTECP) expressed concern over the low budgetary provisions for education and health sectors in the proposed Zamfara State 2024 fiscal year budget despite declaration on the State of Emergency to education sector by Governor Dauda Lawal.
In a statement collectively signed by the coalition Chairman and secretary, Malam Balarabe Idris and Dr. Ahmad Hashim respectively, observed that there was no significant difference from the current 2023 and 2024 proposed budgets where the education sector received 11.6% of the overall 2023 annual budget, and 12% of the 2024 proposed annual budget allocated to the education by the present administration.
The Statement further recalled that, Zamfara State is among the states been ranked with poor education and health indicators, 61.4% of school-aged children in the state according to the Multiple Cluster Indicator Survey 2021 are out of school, 55% of primary school pupils of the state are not completing their primary school, in addition to the deteriorating condition of the poor condition of public primary schools and low number of teachers across the state.
On the health sector budget, the coalition noted that, despite the poor health sector indices of the state, the proposed 2024 budget was not designed to significantly change the narrative as there was a decrease in the health sector budget proposal from 9% in the 2023 state approved budget to 7.8% in the proposed 2024 state annual budget.
The coalition also noted that, Zamfara state was recently ranked by the Nigeria Multidimensional Child Poverty Report 2023 released by the National Bureau for Statistics (NBS) number 4 among the 36 states of the federation with a high number of multidimensionally poor children as 82.2% of children in the state are multidimensionally poor including access to education and health.
The Statement appealed to the State Governor and members of the State House of Assembly to consider the review of the two critical child-related sectors for the well-being and development of Zamfara State Children.
“Children are the worst-affected victims of poverty and inequality. Poverty and inequality are key structural problems in Zamfara State. The state was ranked number 4 among the states with a high number of multidimensionally poor children.
“82.2% of children in Zamfara State are multidimensionally poor. The proposed 2024 fiscal year budget did not translate the pronouncement and commitment of the present administration to the education and health sectors of the state.
“Our children are being deprived of the provision of basic services. We are appealing to His Excellency to kindly review this budget and provide significant provisions that would improve children’s access to education, social protection, health, nutrition, water, and protection.
“Overall, only 24% of the overall state 2024 proposed budget was allocated to the social sector as against 31.6% of the overall 2023 state annual budget”, the statement has lamented.
