WaterAid Trains Lagos Officials On Budget Tracking

WaterAid Nigeria on Tuesday begun a two-day capacity building on inclusive participatory budget training and tracking for officials of Ojodu and Ikorodu North Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) and WASHCOM Federation.

 

The training is supported by Cummins, PEPSICO Foundation and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

 

In his welcome remark, WaterAid WASHCOM Manager, Mr Bamikole Adegbite, stressed the need for inclusive and participatory budgeting to ensure development at the grassroots.

 

The aim of the training is to build and strengthen the capacity of participants on processing and tracking of budget to enhance transparency and accountability.

 

Speaking on the importance of the training, Mr Ayo Adebusoye, the Chairman, Lagos Civil Society Participatory for Development, said budget analysis and processing was key to the development of any society.

 

“One of the things that democracy does is that it makes everybody participate in government, and the budget is the main tool for development,” he said.

 

Adebusoye described the budget as the main important tool for growth and development after the constitution.

 

“So, it is very important that all stakeholders, civil societies, government officials and the media should be very interested in analysing the budget and knowing the important tool to use.

 

“This is important to see that the government is actually giving value for money,” Adebusoye said.

 

Also speaking, Dr Adebayo Alao, the Lagos State Programme Lead for WaterAid, expressed gratitude to the participants for their commitment concerning WASH issues in the state.

 

Alao said the training was aimed at revamping the system of participatory budgeting.

 

He noted that budget at the public level was restricted to the department in charge of budget preparation.

 

He, therefore, urged stakeholders to embrace participatory budgeting for transparency and growth.

 

“What we are doing here is to support the system.

 

“We are training the two LCDAs on inclusive participatory budgeting so that it can become a model for other LCDAs and local governments in the state,” he said.

 

He urged the two LCDAs to adopt the participatory budgeting system to make the 2026 budget process more participatory.

 

Adegbite added that the process would promote dialogue between community members and government officials about budgetary issues.

 

Participants at the training included representatives from the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, council managers in Ikorodu North and Ojodu LCDAs, development partners and the media.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NAN/Oyenike Oyeniyi