From Abdullahi Shugaba, in Katsina
The Katsina State Governor, Malam Dikko Umaru Radda, has approved the release of N500 million counterpart fund to deepen Child Nutrition with UNICEF in the state noting that it aims at improving healthcare and other development indicators across the state.
Radda stated this when the new Chief of UNICEF Field Office, Kano, Mr. Shafeeq Ur-Rehman led a delegation on a courtesy visit to his office in Katsina.
The Citizenship Daily noted in a statement UNICEF Kano Field Office supports development of programme implementations in Katsina, Kano and Jigawa states.
The governor said that years of collaboration between Katsina State and UNICEF yielding fruitful results, particularly in the fight against child malnutrition.
“We have been working closely with UNICEF over the years and we are encouraged by the results we are seeing,” Radda said.
He noted that the partnership had supported the establishment of stabilisation centres and outpatient treatment sites for children with severe acute malnutrition, adding that the number of children requiring treatment at the facilities begun to decline.
The governor further assured UNICEF that Katsina would continue to fulfil its responsibilities in interventions aimed at improving the wellbeing of residents.
“We are not doing it for you; we are doing it for our people,
when I was a student, I always aimed to be at the top, and that’s where I want to leave Katsina State indicators by the time I am leaving office.” he reaffirmed.
On education,Radda said his administration had recruited over 9,000 teachers and invested significantly in teacher training, including a recent Training of Trainers programme involving 250 participants and facilitated by a British expert.
He pledged to include UNICEF’s additional N1.2 billion funding request in the 2027 state budget, stressing that despite limited resources, his administration would continue to prioritise interventions capable of producing measurable improvements in the lives of Katsina residents.
Earlier, the Chief of UNICEF Field Office Kano, Mr. Shafeeq Ur-Rehman, commended Governor Radda for sustaining what he described as a productive partnership with UNICEF, particularly in healthcare, nutrition, education, sanitation, child protection and social development.
Ur-Rehman said the partnership had contributed to improve primary healthcare services, especially in rural and underserved communities, noting that full routine immunisation coverage had more than doubled while under-five mortality had declined significantly compared with the 2018 National Demographic and Health Survey.
On nutrition, Ur-Rehman disclosed that Katsina was participating in a global pilot of the revised World Health Organisation guidelines for the prevention and management of severe wasting in children.
He said Nigeria was one of five countries selected globally for the pilot, with the programme currently being implemented in 10 local government areas of Katsina State.
“Katsina’s participation in this pilot is important because the lessons from here will not only contribute to nutrition programming in Nigeria but will also provide useful evidence for the global response to child malnutrition,” he said.
Ur-Rehman also commended the Radda administration for its consistent contribution to the Child Nutrition Fund, saying Katsina remained one of the few states in Nigeria that had sustained its contribution to the fund over the years.
He explained that the fund had supported the procurement of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food and other essential nutrition commodities for children suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
The UNICEF official further requested increased investment in nutrition, including N1.2 billion under the Child Nutrition Fund, which UNICEF would match to procure Multiple Micronutrient Supplements for pregnant women and therapeutic food for children under five suffering from severe wasting.
On water and sanitation, Ur-Rehman congratulated Katsina for becoming the second state in Nigeria to attain Open Defecation Free status in 2025, describing the achievement as particularly significant given the security challenges confronting parts of the North-West.
He urged the government to sustain the achievement through continued investment in sanitation facilities and measures that would prevent communities from slipping back into open defecation.
Ur-Rehman also briefed the Governor on the Climate-Resilient Infrastructure for Basic Services II project, funded by the United Kingdom Government through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
According to him, the project is being implemented across 14 sites in Charanchi, Mani, Dutsinma and Mashi local government areas, providing climate-resilient water and sanitation facilities in nine schools and five primary healthcare centres.
Turning to education, the UNICEF official acknowledged the state government’s efforts to expand access to basic education for girls, Almajiri learners, children with disabilities and other marginalised groups.
He, however, called for accelerated implementation of the Katsina State Education Sector Plan 2026–2033, saying this would help address the estimated 536,122 out-of-school children in the state.
Ur-Rehman also highlighted progress in child protection, noting that birth registration coverage in Katsina had reached 68 per cent, the highest among the three states covered by the UNICEF Kano Field Office.
On social protection, he disclosed that more than 604,925 households had been captured in Katsina’s social register, providing the government with a stronger platform for identifying and supporting poor and vulnerable households.
The UNICEF chief particularly praised the Radda administration for making Katsina the first and only state in Nigeria so far to appropriate N270 million for the implementation of a SMART Nutrition Survey.
“This commitment demonstrates strong government leadership and recognises that reliable and timely nutrition data are essential to tackling malnutrition effectively,” Ur-Rehman said.
He reaffirmed UNICEF’s readiness to work with the state government on the Rapid SMART/SMART+ Nutrition Survey, saying the exercise would provide reliable data to identify vulnerable communities, guide the allocation of resources and improve nutrition interventions for women and children.
