FG constitutes funding committee for nutrition interventions

FG constitutes funding committee for nutrition interventions

The National Council on Nutrition (NCN) has set up a Nutrition Financing Subcommittee to develop a funding structure to finance Nigeria’s nutrition interventions.

Vice-President Kashim Shettima, who is the Chairman of NCN, constituted the committee, on Thursday during a meeting of the council held virtually.

The Voice Media Trust (VMT NEWS) reports that the committee  is expected to come up with a financing roadmap within 30 days and present to the NCN and the National Economic Council for review and adoption.

The members of the sub-committee chaired by the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, includes; the Ministers of Education, Water Resources, Women Affairs, and Science and Technology.

Others are the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Health, while the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning will serve as the Secretariat.

Shettima called for ring-fencing nutrition financing in order to bridge the gap between promises made and lives changed.

He directed the involvement of development partners and private investors in the committee, including the Aliko Dangote Foundation.

The vice president said the council resolved that the National Nutrition Bill should be pursued with urgency.

“The NCN recognises the importance of establishing a strong legal and institutional framework to sustain coordination, financing, and accountability across sectors.

“Council therefore resolves that the National Nutrition Bill should be pursued with urgency.

“ The Ad-hoc Technical Committee will continue its work and will be co-chaired by the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, reflecting the central role of both financing and food systems in improving nutrition outcomes,” he said

Shettima added: “The council also resolved that budget allocations must be matched with timely releases and effective utilisation.

” Ministries, Departments, and Agencies must ensure that approved funds for nutrition-related programmes are released and implemented accordingly”.

He acknowledged the strategic importance of the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRiN) 2.0 Project in addressing urgent service delivery gaps in high-burden states.

Shettima encouraged state governors to fast-track the necessary actions at the state level to ensure timely implementation and effective utilisation of the available resources.

“If our efforts are to succeed, they must not stop at the federal level, because nutrition outcomes are ultimately determined within households and communities.

“It requires stronger sub-national ownership and deeper grassroots engagement, ensuring that states, local governments, community leaders, and frontline workers play their full role in the implementation,” he said.

The Vice-President observed that the sub-national voices, leadership, and participation must be fully integrated into planning, decision-making, and programme delivery.

“Our collective responsibility is to ensure that the policies and commitments we make here translate into real improvements in homes and communities across all 774 Local Government Areas of Nigeria.

“The central reform issue before us is financing, not as theory, but as execution,” he said.

Shettima said there must be clarity on how funds are budgeted, released, ring-fenced, and tracked, as well as how every Naira is accounted for across ministries, departments, agencies, and states.

“Budgeting without release is not financing; Allocation without predictability is not reform; Nutrition must be protected.

” Every MDA must now account not just for figures on paper but for measurable changes in the lives of Nigerians,” he stated.

Shettima acknowledged that the burden of dismantling the maladies hindering Nigeria’s quest for a well-nourished nation is on the Council.

“We must strengthen budget tagging, tracking, and reforms to the chart of accounts so Nigerians can see real outcomes.

“Without ring-fencing nutrition financing, the gap between promises made and lives changed will continue to widen.”

Shettima asked ministers who were formerly legislators to mobilise their counterparts to ensure that the bill sees the light of day.

The Chairman, Nigeria Governor’s Forum, Gov. Abdulrahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara, reiterated governors’ commitment and support for all nutrition-focused projects at all levels in the country.

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The Minister of Education, Dr Morufu  Alausa, recommended the creation of a sustainable funding structure to support the Federal Government’s nutrition drive.

VMT NEWS reports that the council received an updated report on the national nutrition budgeting outlook which highlighted progress made and funding gaps across MDAs and sub-national levels.

The reports identified key priority areas, including sustained exploration of reform initiatives across all levels of government, consolidation of the national scale up on nutrition as enshrined in the ANRiN 2.0 programme.

The council was informed that the State Council on Nutrition (SCN) had been inaugurated in nine states, namely Abia, Adamawa, Borno, Cross River, Jigawa, Plateau, Rivers, Yobe, and Zamfara, with more underway.