Katsina State Governor, Malam Dikko Umaru Radda, has approved the release of N500 million as counterpart funding for the Child Nutrition Fund, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to improving nutrition, healthcare and other key development indicators across the state.
Governor Radda announced the approval on Sunday while receiving the new Chief of the UNICEF Field Office, Kano, Mr. Shafeeq Ur-Rehman, and his delegation during a courtesy visit to the Government House, Katsina. The UNICEF Kano Field Office oversees programme implementation in Katsina, Kano and Jigawa states.
The governor said the long-standing partnership between Katsina State and UNICEF had continued to deliver positive outcomes, particularly in addressing 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 collaboration had supported the establishment of stabilisation centres and outpatient treatment facilities for children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, adding that the number of children requiring treatment had begun to decline.
Governor Radda assured UNICEF that the state government would continue to meet its obligations under various intervention programmes aimed at improving the wellbeing of residents.
“We are not doing it for you; we are doing it for our people.”
The governor also reaffirmed his administration’s ambition to improve Katsina’s development indicators.
“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.”
On education, Radda said his administration had recruited more than 9,000 teachers and invested significantly in teacher capacity development, including a recent Training of Trainers programme involving 250 participants facilitated by a British education expert.
He further pledged to include UNICEF’s request for an additional N1.2 billion under the Child Nutrition Fund in the state’s 2027 budget, stressing that despite limited financial resources, his administration would continue to prioritise programmes capable of delivering measurable improvements in the lives of Katsina residents.
Earlier, the Chief of UNICEF Field Office, Kano, Mr. Shafeeq Ur-Rehman, commended the Radda administration for sustaining what he described as a productive partnership with UNICEF across healthcare, nutrition, education, sanitation, child protection and social development.
Ur-Rehman said the collaboration had contributed to improved primary healthcare services, particularly in rural and underserved communities, noting that routine immunisation coverage had more than doubled while under-five mortality had declined significantly compared with figures from the 2018 National Demographic and Health Survey.
On nutrition, he disclosed that Katsina is participating in a global pilot programme implementing the revised World Health Organisation guidelines for the prevention and management of severe wasting in children.
According to him, Nigeria is one of five countries selected for the pilot programme, with implementation currently taking place 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.”
Ur-Rehman also praised the state government for consistently contributing to the Child Nutrition Fund, describing Katsina as one of the few states in Nigeria to sustain funding support over the years.
He explained that the fund has enabled the procurement of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food and other essential nutrition commodities for children suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
The UNICEF official appealed for increased investment in nutrition programmes, including the proposed N1.2 billion counterpart funding, which UNICEF would match to procure Multiple Micronutrient Supplements for pregnant women and therapeutic food for children under five affected by severe wasting.
On water, sanitation and hygiene, Ur-Rehman congratulated Katsina for becoming the second state in Nigeria to attain Open Defecation Free (ODF) status in 2025, describing the achievement as remarkable despite security challenges affecting parts of the North-West.
He urged the government to sustain the gains through continued investment in sanitation infrastructure and measures to prevent communities from returning to 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 (FCDO).
He said 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, Ur-Rehman acknowledged the state government’s efforts to improve access to basic education for girls, Almajiri learners, children with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.
However, he called for accelerated implementation of the Katsina State Education Sector Plan 2026–2033 to help address the estimated 536,122 out-of-school children in the state.
The UNICEF official also highlighted progress in child protection, noting that birth registration coverage in Katsina had reached 68 per cent—the highest among the three states served by the UNICEF Kano Field Office.
On social protection, he disclosed that more than 604,925 households had been captured in the state’s social register, strengthening the government’s capacity to identify and support poor and vulnerable families.
Ur-Rehman further commended the Radda administration for making Katsina the first and only state in Nigeria 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.”
He reaffirmed UNICEF’s commitment to supporting the Katsina State Government in implementing the Rapid SMART/SMART+ Nutrition Survey, saying the exercise would provide reliable data to identify vulnerable communities, improve resource allocation and strengthen nutrition interventions for women and children.
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