By Sani Idris Abdulrahman 

The Human Capital Development Core Working Group (HCD-CWG) has initiated formal engagements with Northern governors ahead of the Northern Regional Human Capital Summit, scheduled for February.

The summit would to be hosted in Kaduna by His Excellency Governor Uba Sani, together with His Excellency Governor Inuwa Yahaya, Governor of Gombe State and Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, on behalf of the nineteen Northern states.

The Summit would bring together governors, deputy governors, traditional rulers, religious leaders, political leaders, technical experts, civil society stakeholders and development partners to build a coordinated regional approach to improving human capital outcomes.

Discussions would span the full life cycle, including nutrition, health, education, learning poverty, poverty reduction, skills, jobs and broader social and economic indicators.

According to the HCD-CWG, a multi-stakeholder Planning Committee has been established with representation from the Office of the Vice President, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, the Sir Ahmadu Bello Foundation and the World Bank, among other partners.

The committee is responsible for shaping the summit’s thematic focus, evidence foundations and delivery pathways, ensuring the agenda aligns with state realities and national priorities.

During the engagement with governors, a presentation was delivered on behalf of the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate.

The presentation highlighted the demographic dividend opportunity for Northern Nigeria and stressed the importance of long-term, population-focused investments to strengthen the region’s human capital trajectory.

It formed part of the broader preparatory work being undertaken jointly by the HCD-CWG, the Ahmadu Bello Foundation, the World Bank and other partners in the lead-up to the Northern Nigeria Dialogue on Human Capital.

The February summit, would would, therefore, feature high-level political dialogues, data-driven evidence sessions, technical deep dives and state experience-sharing.

Officials noted that the conversations would prioritise demographic pressures, stunting, maternal and child health, learning poverty, education system performance, workforce readiness, skills and job creation. Beyond these discussions.

It would also outline a set of actionable investments that states can begin implementing immediately to turn the tide on human capital outcomes across the region.

Governors and representatives expressed strong support for the initiative, noting that a region-wide platform is both timely and necessary given the shared development challenges across northern states. 

They emphasised that coordinated action, informed by evidence, is essential to improving outcomes and building resilient institutions across the North.

Further details on preparatory technical sessions, timelines and stakeholder consultations are expected to be released by the Planning Committee in the coming weeks.