By Muhammad Amaan
The Bauchi State Zero Dose Learning Hub Community of Practice (CoP) has paid follow up advocacy to the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning for more support and collaboration to ensure adequate release and accountability.
The African Health Budget Network (AHBN) is implementing Nigeria Zero Dose Learning Hub (ZDLH) in consortium with African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET) in close collaboration with the Federal Government of Nigeria, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), State Primary Health Care Boards with technical support from Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance.
The Members of Bauchi State Community of Practice (CoP) under the leadership of its Co-Chairman, Mr Jinjiri Garba and the Coordination of the Bauchi State AHBN Focal Person, Dr Hassan Shuaibu Musa had today paid a follow-up Advocacy visit to the members of the Top Management Committee (TMC) of the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning.
The visiting CoP members were received by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry Mal Jibrin Mohammed Yusuf alongside the Director Administration and Human Resources (DAHR) Danladi Abdu Dagauda, Ibrahim Ahmed Rufai-Director Budget, Usman Umar Mohammed-Director Multilateral Cooperation & Technical Operations, Shehu Abubakar Madaki-Director Monitoring and Evaluation, and Mal Sanusi Ladan- Director Planning and Programs.
Earlier, the state Focal Person for AHBN informed the role of ZDLH CoP and other partners in ensuring the allocating the projected N870 million immunization budget in the 2025 financial year alongside other stakeholders in the state.
This was in addition to the CoP’s high-level advocacies carried out previously such as the CoPs visit to Hon. Auwal Mohammed Jatau, the Deputy Governor of the State, the CoPs advocacy to the State Assembly Members including the Majority Leader and Chairman House Committee on Health among others; similar visit was carried out in the Ministry of Health and State Primary Health Care Board in 2024.
The Focal Person informed the management team that the follow up visit is to strengthen AHBNs collaboration and partnership with the Ministry with a view to leveraging on the activities of the CoP to ensure increased budgetary release that is timely while entrusting the principle of sustainable accountability to immunization financing.
The visiting team informed the Ministry’s TMC that AHBN through its CoP in the State has concluded working on Bauchi State Immunization Financing Scorecard and that the document is due for validation anytime soon while hoping for the Ministry’s key participation during the scorecard validation exercise.
Responding, the Permanent Secretary, Malam Jibrin Mohammed Yusuf thanked the visiting team on behalf of the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, who is in Saudi Arabia for lesser Hajj, and further reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to upholding and further strengthening the existing relationship of AHBN and its CoP.
He pledged to support higher budgetary release to immunization by the government in 2025, and also promise to officially present a hard cover budget of 2025 to the CoP through its chairman.
