Kaduna State Gets International Recognition for Inclusive Governance

Governor Uba Sani-led government of Kaduna State, has bagged an International Award of Excellence for running an excellent inclusive government.

The Kaduna State citizens participation platform, known as Eyes and Ears, earned the State the Award from Sharjah International Government Forum, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Presenting the Award to Governor Uba Sani on Thursday, the Commissioner for Planning and Budget, Hon. Mukhtar Ahmed Monrovia, said Kaduna State emerged the first among 40 other entities from across the World during the award event that had over 4,000 participants in attendance in Sharjah, UAE.

According to him, “This award was won by Kaduna State because of the popular programme w e run called Eyes and Ears, a platform that allows participation of citizens in governance.

40 participating entities

“Kaduna State Government through the Eyes and Ears programme is an initiative of the Kaduna State Government, whereby the participation of citizens in governance is in action. Because of this programme, Kaduna State Government was nominated for this international award by the Sharjah Government.

“It is an internationally recognized award, and Kaduna state was recognised among 40 participating entities for good communication, and we won the award.

“The Eyes Ears Programme is being run under an application called CITIFEED application, which is a citizens’ feedback application. The program started around 2017 when citizens identified projects within a 2 2-kilometer radius, and from their feedback, the government gets information and corrects any anomalies if there is in the project or makes requests for adjustments to the project.

“The application has been there, but what made us win this award is that His Excellency Governor Uba Sani has, since his assumption of office as the Governor, allowed us to upgrade the platform to the level that it has earned this award. The Governor approved through budgetary allocation for the upgrade of this program, and it got noticed by the international community,” he said.

School feeding program

In another development, Governor Uba Sani bagged two other awards of excellence on the School Feeding program for benefiting secondary school students and the Noble African Icon Award.

Presenting the students’ award to Governor Uba Sani, his Special Assistant on the School Feeding Programme, Fauziyah Buhari Ado, said the award was motivated by the commitment of the Governor to contribute to the school feeding program despite the budget constraints and economic crisis.

She said the school feeding program had not only increased school enrollment and retention, but it has also improved the nutrition of the beneficiary students and pupils, which in turn has had positive impacts on their studies, making them ready to compete favorably with their peers anywhere in the world.

Governor Uba Sani was elated by the several awards and pledged to continue to deliver good governance to the people of Kaduna State.

Lateefah Ibrahim