Skip to main content

Kaduna COVID-19 Lockdown, People Living with Disabilities and Inclusion


Chairman JONAPWD, Abdulaziz Suleiman, (Right) and a colleague (Middle) in a chat with CALPED's Yusuf Goje


By SMITH WAYA

Before the index case of Corona virus (Covid-19) in Nigeria, the Kaduna state government held a public hearing on the proposed  Kaduna state social protection policy, in line with the administration's slogan of putting the people first. The Joint National Associations of Person with Disability(JONAPWD), Kaduna chapter, as the umbrella body for people living disabilities in the State, were invited to present a position paper on their expectations of the new policy.

The Disability Community took advantage of the town-hall meeting to appeal to the state government to work assiduously towards reducing poverty and hunger in their household. The Governor, Mallam Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai, assured them of the state government's commitment in ensuring that no one is left behind especially people living with disabilities.

Incidently, as the State government is in the process of developing its social protection policy framework, the Governor ordered the restriction on movement in the state in a bid to curb the spread of deadly COVID-19. Consequently, the state government released the sum of five hundred million naira (N500m) for the procurement and distribution of relief materials to vulnerable groups to reduce their suffering due to the lockdown.

Upon receiving this news, many were excited that the vulnerable groups, like the people living with disabilities, would be rescued from extreme hardship compounded by the necessary lockdown.  However, during the distribution, many of them were excluded from the list of beneficiaries generated by the cluster committees.It seems that the hardworking palliative committee, headed by Secretary to State government, forgot about the persons living with disabilities in the State.

Also, the absence of the civil society organizations (CSOs) in most of the cluster committee set up to identify beneficiaries and distribute the relief materials also contributed to the exclusion of the PWDs. The CSOs under the Technical Working Group of OGP have been working with government for the past two years, in a bid to ensure transparency, accountability and restore the trust between government and citizens.

However, the state government either by omission or commission did not adequately carry CSOs along in the 8 pilot local governments; presumably, this is because the palliative committee did not recognize CSOs as the bridge between the government and the people. The CSOs would have ensured that the Disability community, which is one of the most organized among the vulnerable groups in the state, with clusters in all the wards in the state, are not largely excluded.

The question on the lips  of many observers is: if majority of the disabilities, the elderly and the widows did not get the food stuff, then who are those vulnerable people that benefited from the N500 million naira worth of food stuff in eight local government council areas?

Collaborating with CSOs, the media and other development partners, especially those ones working with the vulnerable groups in the state such as the Kaduna Social Protection Accountability Coalition (KADSPAC), OGP Technical working Group, Save the Children, Partnership to Engage, Reform & Learn (PERL) and other interested group’s or individuals will go a long way in ensuring that the real vulnerable groups benefit and the government gets the credit.

However, the Governor el-Rufai led government must be commended for its proactive measures in curbing the spread ofCOVID-19, and the good intentions towards the vulnerable groups in the state despite some shortcomings largely by some of the cluster committees in ensuring adequate inclusion of PWDs as beneficiaries.

As an Active citizen that believes in good governance, I advocate that the state government should review the concluded pilot phase by involving CSOs and media to make the process more equitable, transparent and accountability. These groups and media working around social inclusion will surely support the government in identifying the real vulnerable group’s and monitor the whole process to ensure it is result-driven.

Waya is Head, Social Inclusion & Gender Equity, Coalition of Associations for Leadership, Peace, Empowerment & Development (CALPED) in Kaduna-Nigeria.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

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...
Post a Comment
Read more

Open Budget: Kaduna seeks citizens' input in 2020 Budget

F ollowing 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 ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Quality Seeds: Farmers call for full Implementation of NASC Act

S equel to the recent signing of the National gricultural Seeds Council (NASC) Amendment Bill by President Muhammadu Buhari into law,  the National Agricultural Seeds Advocacy Group (NASAG) during the week, in Abuja, played host to farmers’ associations, cooperatives, the civil society and other critical stakeholders to map out the way forward for the nation’s agricultural sector. The participants who were drawn from the three states of Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano and the FCT, among other things, reviewed engagements in the last quarter, results and challenges therefrom and developed a framework for tracking outcomes of advocacy, visa-vis improvement level so far of farmers’ access to  quality seeds,  with special emphasis on timely implementations of recommendations from NASAG’s dialogue with farmers. Representatives of the three states of Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano and the Federal Capital Territory(FCT) took turns to outline the inroads they have made in the period...
Post a Comment
Read more

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...
Post a Comment
Read more

Coalition cautions against Nigeria's Disunity

  N etwork for Better Nigeria, a coalition of concerned Civil Society Organizations in the 19 Northern States has responded to  the growing tension threatening national unity and socio-economic development of the country and called on President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently collaborate with the governors in the 19 northern states and critical stakeholders to arrest the lingering insecurity in Nigeria. In a joint statement signed by Mallam Isiaku Abdulhameed, the coalition in collaboration with Arewa Youth Consultative Youth Movement, Arewa Youth Assembly and Chanchanta stated inter Alia:  "the Federal Government should urgently collaborate with the Northern State Governors and come up with a modernistic livestock development policy which will not only provide solutions to the herders/farmers crises but transform the age long traditional open grazing towards providing additional economic value for pastoral communities. Equally, we wish to express our support on the position...
Post a Comment
Read more