FG Rallies Support To Address Malnutrition In 774 LGAs
By Admin
ABUJA – The Federal Government has said that sustainable change begins with strategic actions and collaborative leadership towards Government efforts in addressing the problems of food and nutrition security at the Local Government Level.
Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, made this remark while speaking at the two-day Stakeholders’ Workshop on the implementation of the Nutrition 774 Initiative, with members of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) National Executive Council (ALGON-NEC), in Niger State.
Bagudu, who was represented by the Acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Sampson Ebimaro, stated that the workshop was to provide a veritable platform for the stakeholders to develop clinical pathways that would eventually translate to improving nutrition outcomes at sub-national levels as well as leverage the ALGON NEC’s experience in policy advocacy and implementation in shaping a collective roadmap to catalyse innovation and foster partnerships between sectors and the ALGON.
The minister noted that the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning was committed to coordinating the implementation with the Office of the Vice President to ensure effective delivery of the framework at both National and Sub-National levels.
In his opening remarks, the Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the Vice President, Senator Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia, reiterated that “Towards sustainable human development under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the N774 Initiative sticks to a similar truth: Development is most meaningful when it begins at the grassroots”
He stressed that the programme was conceived as a strategic response to one of the gravest, yet, least visible challenge confronting Nigeria as a country – malnutrition.
He pointed out that “This is not just a health challenge; it’s an economic impediment, an educational barrier, and a silent threat to national productivity and security.
“Our economy cannot thrive when a significant portion of its future workforce is denied the foundational right to adequate nutrition.
“It is for this reason that the Nutrition 774 initiative was launched to ensure that every Local Government Area becomes a centre of coordinated action against malnutrition.
“If malnutrition is most prevalent at the grassroots, then solutions will logically be anchored there as well,” he said.
Addressing Local government leaders, Hadejia said: “You are the fulcrum of this effort, and the success of this framework depends on your commitment to institutionalising nutrition governance”
In his remarks, the National President of ALGON,Bello Lawal, reaffirmed the Association’s commitment to supporting the Nutrition 774 Initiative being a flagship programme under the President’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Recognising the critical role local governments play in addressing malnutrition and improving nutritional outcomes, he assured that ALGON was poised to drive impactful interventions at the grassroots level.
These, he said, include participating in the development of the N-774 Implementation Framework and Roadmap, advocating nutrition-specific budget lines and sustainable local funding sources and coordinating awareness sessions for State and Local Government Chairmen.
Also speaking, the Chief of Nutrition, UNICEF- Nigeria, Nemat Hajeebhoy, commended the Office of the Vice President, Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning and ALGON NEC for their leadership and steadfast commitment to making nutrition a national and local development priority.
She asserted that the world could not win the fight against hunger without Nigeria at the forefront, as such, the meeting underscored the Nutrition Stakeholders’ shared urgency and responsibility.
”Local Governments (LGAs) are on the frontline of implementation.
“The Nutrition 774 Initiative presents a unique opportunity to decentralise nutrition governance, strengthen local financing mechanisms, and deliver tailored, measurable and community-level impact,” she said.
Hajeebhoy, therefore, noted that the workshop also provided Learning opportunities from Success stories like the Jigawa’s Masaki Programme.
She explained that Jigawa State’s Masaki Programme provides a scalable community-driven model.
She also advised ALGON and the Office of the Vice President to undertake a learning visit to observe the programme in action.
Her words: “We encourage other LGAs to adapt similar models, tailor it to their local context to fast-track progress.
During zonal presentations on achievements recorded so far on N774, the North- West region unanimously said it had appointed technical nutrition focal persons across the states, created nutrition budget lines in all the local governments, established experience sharing and collaboration between development partners and strong monitoring and evaluation system with good personnel capacity
Under Water Hygiene and Sanitation (WASH), the South- West zone said they had enlightened the community to increase private sector involvement in building private toilets and enacted laws against offenders involved in open defecation.
In terms of education, the zone also pledged to integrate nutrition education in all primary schools in the first quarter of 2026 and promote healthy eating among children, home grown feeding, conduct school- based nutrition programmes and other activities.
The Workshop was sponsored by UNICEF Nigeria Office, Helen Keller International and Civil Society- Scaling Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN).
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