By Abdulaziz Abdulaziz Abuja
Th e Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) yesterday reviewed their partnership in programmes in the 36 states of the federation, promising to consolidate on the gains from the relationship. Both the NGF and the BMGF, at a meeting held at the NGF secretariat in Asokoro, Abuja, agreed that their programmes are changing lives in a positive way, even as they move to look for ways of improving their programmes and their impact on the Nigerian people.
A statement issued yesterday by the head of media of the NGF, Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, said the decision for greater collaborations was a highlight of discussions when the Gates Foundation director of Global Policy and Advocacy, Mr. Daniel Green, visited the Director General of the Forum, Mr. Asishana B. Okauru. Green recalled that the foundation had supported the NGF in its recent eff orts in the eradication of polio in the country and is now spearheading the Internally Generated Revenue or IGR Dash Board for the secretariat.
He said the BMGF was trawling for a joined-up approach by way of a feedback on its activities in Nigeria and seeking the NGF’s view of how the foundation could better partner states in accomplishing its task of enhancing development in a constructive manner.
“We are concerned that most partners are not forthcoming withfeedback to the foundation perhaps because of the consequences of being critical of where the resources are coming from but we are more comfortable with the NGF because of its prime status in Nigeria and we believe whatever the NGF says may be true of what the general response to our programmes are” Green said. On his part, the DG of the Governors’ Forum, admonished the BMGF to be aware that “it is imperative to begin to look beyond the central government for development solutions”. Okauru stated that the NGF is suitably positioned to execute all the programs of the BMGF and more but agrees with the BMGF Director that much needs to be done in the area of rapprochement between the two organs if any meaningful progress is to be made.
