End of Commitment Report – Inclusion: Strengthening Social Protection System in Kaduna State

Name of Evaluator

Prof Hauwau Evelyn Yusuf

Email

eveadex@gmail.com

Member Name

Kaduna State, Nigeria

Action PlanAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen... Title

Action plan – Kaduna State, Nigeria, 2021 – 2023

CommitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action...

InclusionOGP participating governments are working to create governments that truly serve all people. Commitments in this area may address persons with disabilities, women and girls, lesbian, gay, bisexual, tr... More: Strengthening Social Protection System in Kaduna State

Action

Kaduna State government has committed itself by putting in place a social protection policy. A dedicated budget line item (1% of consolidated revenue) to social protection programs. Approval of the Social Register as a primary database of the poor and vulnerable households for all pro-poor interventions. Further Commitments are: Establish an agency for social protection. Establish a social security trust fund. Develop and forward an Executive Bill on Social Protection to the State House of Assembly.

Problem

Despite several efforts by the government, significant gaps in the provision of social protection services still exist in the state. Social protection is about upholding human dignity and promoting the overall well-being of individuals amidst socioeconomic adversity. This commitment intends to bridge identified gaps in rendering social protection services in the state.

1.1 What was the overall level of progress in the commitment implementation at the time of this assessment?

Substantial

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

Based on the status of implementation of each milestone of social protection, we had 6 milestones under this commitment out of which three were completed, two were in progress and one incomplete at the time of compiling this assessment.

• Commitment Repository
• News Article – Cash transfer improving our lives –Kaduna beneficiaries
• News Article – FG’s cash transfer improving lives of poor, vulnerable households, say beneficiaries
• News Article – Kaduna Govt. restates commitment to social protection of citizens
• News Article – Pensioners laud Kaduna Govt over income security to retirees
• SoundClip – More than 70,000 Conditional Cash Transfer beneficiaries received assistant for livelihood plans

1.2 Describe the main external or internal factors that impacted implementation of this commitment and how they were addressed (or not).

The implementation of this commitment had support from donor partner Save the Children International and a high-level interest from the State Government. This enabled close monitoring of the implementation of all the milestones with support from the donor partner to implement one of the milestones. The milestone had support from the Federal Government as well with the required funding provided but not sufficient to implement all the milestones in the commitment area. TWG to expand some points.

1.3 Was the commitment implemented as originally planned?

All of the commitment milestones were implemented as planned

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

The milestones of each commitment were clearly captured using the Result-based M&E approach.

2.1.1. – Did the government disclose more information; improve the quality of the information (new or existing); improve the value of the information; improve the channels to disclose or request information or improve accessibility to information?

Yes

Degree of result:

Major

Explanation: In narrative form, what has been the impact on people or practice.

The commitment provided an opportunity for citizens through the Kaduna Social Protection Accountability Coalition (KADSPAC) to track the beneficiaries of various social protection interventions in the state. The citizens had the opportunity to engage the Kaduna Social Investment Office on the State Social Register (SSR), a register made up of poor and vulnerable households in the state. Basic Health Care Provision funds were also tracked by citizens across the state. KADSPAC also carried out activities around tracking the budget performance of social protection across the State.

2.1.2. – Did the government create new opportunities to seek feedback from citizens/enable participation inform or influence decisions; improve existing channels or spaces to seek feedback from citizens/enable participation/ inform or influence decisions; create or improve capabilities in the government or the public aimed to improve how the government seeks feedback from citizens/enables participation/ or allows for the public to inform or influence decisions?

Yes

Degree of result:

Major

Explanation: In narrative form, what has been the impact on people or practice.

The commitment provided an opportunity for a series of engagements on the State Social Register and provided opportunities to engage with the Kaduna Social Investment Office. Some of these activities include; citizens’ engagement on the draft Kaduna State Social Security Bill, media advocacies, Multisectoral Meetings on the State Social Register, Dissemination of the Institutional Capacity Assessment of State Operations Coordinating Unit (SOCU) and State Cash Transfer Unit (SCTU) and many more.

2.1.3 Did the government create or improve channels, opportunities or capabilities to hold officials answerable to their actions?

Not Applicable

2.1.4 Other Results

Yes

Degree of result:

Major

2.2 Did the commitment address the public policy problem that it intended to address as described in the action plan?

Yes

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

The commitment seeks to ensure the expansion of social protection intervention through the effective utilization of the State Social Register. At the end of commitment implementation, the State had developed a State Social Register for Poor and Vulnerable Households that covered the entire state. The State now has beneficiaries benefitting from various Social protection Interventions such as School Feeding, N-Power, Government Enterprise Empowerment Programme (GEEP), Need-Based Scholarship, Health Insurance Scheme, Cash Transfer Programme, and; Pension Scheme.

3. Provide at least one lesson or reflection relating to the implementation of this commitment. It can be the identification of key barriers to implementation, an unexpected help/hindrance, recommendations for future commitments, or if the commitment should be taken forward to the next action plan.

This commitment is a priority of the Government considering the data of multi-dimensional poverty in Kaduna State and the need to lift the ordinary citizens of the state out of poverty. There is a need to push for the Signing of the Social Security Bill and advocate for the implementation of the provisions therein. They buttress the need to roll over this commitment to the third State Action Plan.