Eradicating Poverty: Christian Aid Launches New Intervention Project In Kaduna, Anambra

In an attempt to reduce poverty and improve the wellbeing of over 200,000 selected adolescents, poor rural women and people with disabilities in Kaduna and Anambra States, Christian Aid-Nigeria on Thursday launched a programme called Evidence and Collaboration for Inclusive Development (ECID).

ECID is a two-state programme funded by UK aid and led by Christian Aid in collaboration with Civil Society Organizations across Anambra and Kaduna States which include but not limited to AlD Foundation, Hope for Communities and Children Initiative (H4CC) and Legal Awareness for Nigerian Women (LANW).

The programme, which is expected to run between May 2020 and September 2022, focused on four priority areas of intervention; health, education, agriculture and infrastructure.

Addressing a press conference shortly after the launch of the intervention at Kaduna State Ministry for Local Government’s conference hall with representatives of the State Government and other critical stakeholders, Programme Officer, Gender Equality and Social Inclusion, Christian Aid who doubled as the Project Lead, in Kaduna State, Mercy Okeke said, a number of activities havehappened within the state before the project was officially launched on Thursday.

“Before the launching today, we had a number of activities such as stakeholder engagements and a baseline survey that consisted of focus group discussions, perception surveys, Key Informant Interviews to determine the gaps in access to services across the four priority areas as well as issues of participation by marginalised groups”, she said.

According to Okeke, the programme, which was conceived out of the dire need to address the growing issues of marginalisation and under-development in the country, sought to achieve its aim by facilitating evidence-based policy and decision-making through the effective use of data by policymakers to address the issues of marginalised groups.

Detailing the programme modus operandi, Okeke said the programme will strategically combine its two key strands, “evidence and collaboration” to foster inclusive development which she described as a prerequisite for inclusive sustainable development.

“The pre-launch activities revealed that the most marginalised groups are poor rural women, adolescents, and people with disabilities.

“The programme is, therefore, focusing its efforts on ensuring that the perspectives of these groups are heard and used effectively for policy and decision-making at community, local and state level.

“The programme will also empower these groups to be able to participate meaningfully in governance and decision-making processes as it strives towards a more inclusive and sustainable development”, she added.

Sent By Sola Ojo