By Fatima Saka
The two day South West Human Capital Development Regional Conference has laid out a distinct series of implementation processes for developing a strategy and action plan in engaging state governments to tackle challenges in the health sectors, educational systems and labour force.
The regional conference which was held on Wednesday and Thursday in Lagos, hosted by the state governments, Governor Babatunde Sanwo-Olu in addressing human challenges and putting in place an effective monitoring and evaluation frameworks that can be implemented across the Federation.
With the theme: From Plan To Action: PUSH For HCD.
In his remarks, Governor of Lagos state, Babatunde Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Femi Hamzat stated that in terms of flexibility and standard, in spite of Lagos state having 4% of landmarks in Nigeria have been able to build schools.
He added that Lagos state has adopted the Child Right Act since 2003 up till date, in “Life, survival and balanced development; a name and registration at birth; dignity and respect; privacy, family life and parental care, protection and maintenance”.
Speaking on, Ondo State governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, who represented by his deputy Lucky Aiyedatiwa stated that, Ondo State government is committed in human development. Adding that there are many initiative in the state agenda that align with the HCD intervention.
Listing of the initiatives, the deputy Governor added, the state has established multiple health commissions, enrollment of 4000 pregnant women for free healthcare and free maternity program for women. Adding that the state has also implemented child right laws.
The National Coordinator of HCD, Mrs. Yosola Akinbi stated that today’s event It’s not about the conference, but it’s about the total agreement amongst the Southwest states to actually move forward.
Akinbi further explained that in moving forward, they have identified key areas where all the States need to work on, so as to be able the states to move forward. Adding that those are the things that are connected to health sectors, the education sectors and the labour force.
“The conference has actually brought states together so as to be able to agree on key pair learning outcomes and things that we must all work on.
“And for Nigeria to move forward, all the components of the 36 states must move forward, and the southwest region has committed now to help Nigeria to move forward.
“Human Capital Development started implementation, these are the framework of national vision of healthy, educated and productive Nigerians by the year 2023 on purpose 2030, so to aspire other development plans all over the world.
“HCD has also recognize that transformation must necessarily happen across the 36 states of Nigeria.
“working with the states, to have a vision that aligns with a national, a plan of action of their own, because the conference has helped recognize that states are different from each other.
“And each of these states has its own particularities. So they all have their plans, and also development plan.
“By supporting them technically to have technical working group that is working with three thematic areas of health, education and labor force participation.
“implementation has started, working groups have a framework for monitoring performance across that implementation framework.
“The key components include the critical stakeholders and the local government has been recognize in the implementation process which seek across multiple stakeholders, including the private sector as a major source of implementing the human capital development agenda.
Also, Mrs. Solape Hammond, Special Adviser to the governor of Lagos on the SDGs on investment, said that keeping girls in school is better chance to avoid adolescent pregnancies.
“The longer the country keep child in school, the best economic circumstances.
Akin Emmanuel Abayomi, the Lagos state Commissioner for Health, said If the state going to be competitive on the global stage. Adding that their is a need for young children that are being born today to have the requisite skills to compete on the internationally to drive the Lagos state economy.
He lamented that the state is experiencing a youth bulge, which are the majority of the citizens in Lagos state, under the age of 30.
“That means that we must ensure that the children being born in Lagos today, from the moment their mothers conceived, that the mothers have adequate nutrition through out the nine months that the baby is inside the womb of the mother is developing normal biological development of the brain,” he added.