Social Protection stakeholders in Kaduna State, led by Save the Children International (SCI), an NGO, on Tuesday began a two-day study tour in Zamfara state to learn from the state’s social protection programme.

SCI State Team Lead and Field Manager, Mr Tanko Langaya, explained in Gusau, that the tour was under the NGO’s Child Development Grant Programme (CDGP), Phase II.

Langaya said that the purpose of the tour was to support Kaduna state in securing a wider political and public buy-in on Child Sensitive Social Protection programme.

He added that the emphasis was on importance of first 1,000 days of child’s life and Life Cycle approach through experience sharing from Zamfara and Jigawa states CDGP communities.

According to him, the goal is to understand the concept of social protection, approaches and frameworks, and to understand government’s commitment to the CDGP impact.

“Our expectations are that after the study tour in Zamfara and Jigawa states, Kaduna state will see the need to design and implement its own high impact and broad-based social protection programme.

“This is because, the social protection programme if design and implemented, will meet critical life-cycle deprivations affecting child development in the state.

“The tour also intends to strengthen the state’s institutional capacity and accountability frameworks for the effective implementation and monitoring of social protection programme.

“It will also provide opportunity to share experience, understanding and commitment to women empowerment as critical to successful social protection programmes.

“This, we hope will increase awareness and ensure political and public commitment to establishment of life-cycle based social protection in the state,” he said.

The team leader explained that CDGP has played a central role at Federal and state level in increasing awareness, understanding and support for the concept of nutrition-focused social protection.

He added that the programme also provides technical assistance to government across a wide range of areas and helping to put in place the necessary building blocks to establish the social protection infrastructure in Nigeria.

Responding, Kabiru Muhammad, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Budget and Economic Planning, Zamfara State, welcomed the Kaduna Team and promised a rich learning experience.

Muhammad, who was represented by Director of Administration in the ministry, Malam Abdullahi Gusau, noted that the visit would provide a learning platform for both Kaduna and Zamfara states, through experience sharing.