Open Budget: Kaduna seeks citizens' input in 2020 Budget

Following sustained campaign by concerned citizens and critical stakeholders in Kaduna state to open up the budget cycle, the Governor el-Rufa'i-led administration, during the week, engaged the representatives of the academia, community-based organizations, the civil society, women groups and individuals on state's 2020 to 2022 Medium Term Expenditure Framework(MTEF) to make next year's budget budget realistic and realizable.

The event tagged 'Citizens Consultations on 2020-2022 MTEF' which was put together by the state's Planning and Budget Commission with the support of DFID-funded Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL), took a critical look at strategies to forge a people-centered budget with emphasis on transparency, openness and accountability.

Co-chair of the Open Government Partnership(OGP) in the state, Alhaji Mustapha Jumare told participants that as a sub national, Kaduna state was indeed a trail brazer in nation's quest to maintain, strengthen and sustain participatory democracy for the overall benefit and development of not only the urban poor but it would also go a long way in encouraging the ordinary man and woman in the hinterland to be part and parcel of the state's governance process.

"It's in deed commendable that the Kaduna state government is doing the needful by involving the people in the formulation, planning and implementation of its budgets, a development that is fast making Kaduna people take the government much more seriously, especially in the area of infrastructure development", Jumare remarked, recalling that the people were also carried along during the planning and formulation of the 2019 budget.

The state's Planning and Budget Commissioner, expressed satisfaction with journey so far, maintaining that the state would leave no stone unturned in its resolve to continue to consult and engage the people in accordance with the spirit and letters of open budgeting as stipulated by the Fiscal Responsibility Law.

The commission's Deputy Director of Budget, Linda Yakubu who stood in for the commissioner, reiterated that the event was packaged to essentially get the input of the people in the 2020 budget formulation process as a priority of the state government.

She explained: "The Commission is doing all it can to ensure that the people take ownership of the budget and fully support its implementation for the general good of the state. It is targeted at sustaining and strengthening citizens' engagement in governance".

Mr Timothy Effiong, a Public Financial Management Consultant, who among other things, reviewed micro and macro economic variables in the scheme of things, during the engagement, described MTEF as a public financial management tool used to facilitate effective allocation and utilization of available resources to achieve identified and agreed policies and priorities of government.

Highlight of the event took participants to task when they were broken into groups for their contributions and input into the 2020 budget formulation, with special emphasis on Internally Generated Revenue(IGR), grants, loans, levies and expenditures. Others are capital receipts, VAT and factors that enhance the budget process, monitoring and realistic budgeting.

Comments

Why States may be unable to pay new minimum wage -Commissioner

Citizens listening with rapt attention By YUSUF GOJE C ommissioner, Planning and Budget Commission Kaduna state, Mohammed Sani Dattijo has queried the rationale behind the proposed upward review of the minimum wage, which he said compels even states that are not viable to play ball. Making the assertion at the recently concluded Citizens' Consultation forum on Medium Term Expenditure Framework 2019-2021 held in Kaduna, Dattijo said:"The minimum wage should be moved from the exclusive to the concurrent list, even though Kaduna state is healthier than most states, there are states that cannot afford the increase in minimum wage. If this is not done, the increase in minimum wage will only be on paper but difficult to implement by many states, resulting in labor disputes". He stressed that the exclusiveness of this piece of legislation which empowers only the Federal government to de...

Yearning for sound Fiscal Responsibility

Fundamentals for good governance G overnment and Citizens' Groups in Kaduna state have teamed up to engender effective budget tracking and implementation to create the enabling environment for increased internally generated revenue (IGR), in accordance with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS). This was the fallout of a three-day eye opening event, facilitated by Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL-ECP), in collaboration with the Kaduna state government. The engagement touched on the urgent need to conduct budget trend analysis across key sectors - Economics, Social, Law/Justice as well as Administration, including audit report, all aimed ultimately at putting Kaduna state in good stead for sustained economic growth. Addressing participants drawn from government and citizens' groups, Mr Timothy Effiong, a Public Financial Management Consultant, maintained that even in Kaduna a state that is very policy-driven, there exist gaps in g...

Coalition urges COP-27 to fast track advocacy against Climate Change

Participants in a group photograph after the event in Kaduna By EDDY OCHIGBO, A coalition of environmental organizations in Kaduna, under the aegis Extinction Rebellion (XR) - a global movement which seeks to persuade governments to act justly on climate change and ecological emergency - has hosted a pre-COP27, in partnership with Bridge-that-Gap Initiative, to galvanize the campaign against climate change, as the the 27th Conference of Parties slated for Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt kicks off. In an exclusive interview with NATIONAL ACCORD, one the coordinators of the event in Kaduna metropolis, Mr Zinta Akpoko, revealed that COP27, Egypt could become a turning point of the campaign, given that forerunners of the conference have since pledged to relentlessly push to prioritize climate financing for developing nations. "The effect of climate change is very evident and we need to be very frank by telling the truth about the inherent dangers tha...

TRIBUTE: Dr Bala Takaya 1930 - 2018

Bala John Takaya (2nd Left) at a function recently By Nasiru Jagaba Again, with rude shock, death has come upon us in the early hours of Sunday, 27th May, 2018. It is with deepest regret that the Middle Belt Youth Wing of Middle Belt Forum mourns the death of our President, Father, Mentor, and a tireless advocate of equity, fairness and justice, Dr Bala John Takaya, the President of Middle Belt Forum has silently closed the door of life and departed from us, never to return. 68 years old Takaya, an unparalleled University Senior Lecturer, a distinct politician who served as the Secretary to State Government of the old Gongola State, a member of the 1987 Political Bureau. On the fight to restore democratic system of governance, he worked hand in hand with Chief Solomon Lar. Also, in 1999 he was the governorship candidate of the All People’s Party, APP later ANPP. He is much esteemed in the community of Middle Belt and generally recognized as on...

Making a case for Kaduna's Agric sector

By Yusuf Goje I t will be most appropriate to start by commending the Kaduna State House of Assembly for breaking the jinx of holding a legislative public hearing for the first on the 2020 draft budget. This provided citizens and civil society partners the avenue to make submissions on the various sectors of interest towards improved public service delivery and value for money. The Coalition of Associations for Leadership, Peace, Empowerment & Development (CALPED), a civil society working on governance reforms, submitted a memo and made a presentation making a case for increased funding for the agricultural sector and use of technology to collect data for effective planning, among other critical issues. Our presentation aligned with the words of Akinwumi Adesina, the erudite and charismatic President of the African Development Bank, who rightly posited that, “making agriculture profitable and ‘cool’ for young people in Africa is key to lifting millions out of pove...

Cubinks NEWS

Search This Blog