The newly launched Monitoring and Evaluation framework on Women Economic Empowerment, WEE Programs, will facilitate transparency and accountability in the delivery of government’s capital projects in Nigeria.
Nigeria’s Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Agba said this in Abuja during the launch of the framework on WEE.
The launch was jointly organised by the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies,NIPSS, Ministry of Finance Budget and National Planning (FMFBNP), Ministry of Women Affairs, the Development Research and Project Center DRPC, Partnership For Advancing Women in Economic Development PAWED, and other key Ministries.
According to the Minister, the framework, if properly implemented will contribute to supporting effective data gathering on WEE Initiatives of the Government in a manner that will help the government take informed decisions and actions that will support holistic development of Nigeria.
“In furtherance of the commitment of the government to effective tracking of project performance and their impacts on the citizens, through institutionalization of the M&E system, the Ministry, with the participation of stakeholders including public, private and development actors has produced a National Monitoring and Evaluation Policy Framework document to guide the operations and management of monitoring and evaluation practice in Nigeria,” the Minister said.
He affirmed that the Framework was in alignment with other government Monitoring and Evaluation initiatives .
Major Interventions
The Minister stressed major interventions of the plan to include gender responsive budgeting.
He intimated stakeholders on the approved National Development Plan (NDP) 2021-2025 and government’s resolution to the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
He said, “the vision of the Plan is to make Nigeria a country that has unlocked its potentials in all sectors of the economy for a Sustainable, Holistic and Inclusive National Development.”
In his presentation on M&E framework, the Director National Monitoring & Evaluation Department, Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Dr Lawal Zakariya’u said, despite the commitment of the Nigerian government to women development, stakeholders have no clear document that provides strategic approach to effective tracking of performance of interventions on women empowerment.
Dr Lawal said, “Despite the commitment of the National and sub-national government to women development and empowerment, evident through increased investments in WEE related projects, Programmes and Policies, the government has no clearly articulated documented strategic approach to ensuring effective implementation and tracking of the performance of the interventions which can only be achieved through effective M&E system, hence the need for this Framework.”
The Director of Projects, Development Research and Projects Centre, Dr Stanley Ukpai said that Nigeria being on the path of economic development was engaging the key Ministries and partnering with the DRPC and PAWED to achieve most of it recovery policies which are targeted at women’s economic empowerment.
The Coordinator of Partnership For Advancing Women in Economic Development PAWED, Vera Ndanusa called for full economic engagement and participation of women in all sectors of the economy.
The event featured the presentation of awards to four best female journalists who participated in women economic empowerment special stories competition which was sponsored by PAWED/DRPC under the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundations.
Confidence Okwuchi
