The World Bank has commended Katsina State’s community-driven development model and its coordination of development partners through the Katsina State Development Management Board (KTDMB).
The commendation followed a comprehensive review of World Bank-supported programmes in the state during a meeting between Governor Dikko Umaru Radda and the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Mathew Verghis, at the Government House in Katsina.
Verghis was accompanied by officials involved in the Nigeria for Women Project Scale-Up, including the Task Team Leader, Co-Task Team Leader, National Project Coordinator and Head of Country Management and Development.
Governor Radda said his administration remained committed to accountability, citizen participation and effective implementation of development interventions.
He thanked the World Bank for its continued partnership with Katsina and assured the delegation that the state would strengthen collaboration, address implementation bottlenecks and ensure development financing delivers measurable and sustainable results.
Radda said the state deliberately adopted a community-driven development model that enables communities to identify their priorities, participate in implementation and take ownership of projects designed to improve their welfare.
According to the governor, the approach informed the creation of the Community Development Programme and the strengthening of ward-level participatory budgeting, which gives residents a direct role in determining budget priorities.
He also said the KTDMB had been empowered as the overarching coordination mechanism for development partners in the state. The arrangement is intended to reduce duplication, align interventions with government priorities and ensure compliance with financing agreements and implementation commitments.
The World Bank delegation said its visit was aimed at reviewing World Bank-supported programmes in Katsina, including Investment Project Financing and Programme-for-Results operations, with particular attention to implementation progress, financial performance and measures for accelerating development outcomes.
The delegation commended Katsina for what it described as its emerging model for coordinating development partners through the KTDMB and for institutionalising community-driven development across sectors including education, agriculture, livelihoods and social development.
The bank also specifically praised the Community Development Programme, describing it as a framework for ensuring that government interventions respond to community needs while strengthening local ownership, accountability and sustainability.
The delegation further highlighted Katsina’s participatory budgeting system as an important shift towards bottom-up planning, saying the state was building a broader system of community-driven development rather than implementing isolated projects.
The meeting was attended by the Principal Private Secretary to the Governor, Abdullahi Aliyu Turaji; Executive Director of the KTDMB, Mustapha Shehu; Commissioner for Women Affairs, Aisha Aminu Malumfashi; and other senior government officials.
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