Deputy President of the Senate, Sen. Barau Jibrin and Chairman, Senate Committee on North-West Development Commission, NWDC, Sen. Babangida Hussaini have called for a coordinated economic rescue of the region to address its lingering development challenges.
They both spoke at the North-West Development Summit held in Kaduna were, Barau disclosed that the establishment of the NWDC was aimed at addressing decades of uncoordinated development efforts that yielded little impact across the region.
The summit, with the theme ‘Advancing a Coordinated Regional Development for Northwest Nigeria’, brought together lawmakers, development experts and other stakeholders.
Senator Barau also noted that the North-West, despite being Nigeria’s largest agricultural zone with a huge population, continued to face insecurity, infrastructure deficits, youth unemployment, climate challenges and weak access to social services.
According to him, these challenges cut across state boundaries and require collective, region-wide solutions rather than fragmented interventions.
“The real problem is not lack of resources, but lack of coordination. Our solutions must rise above state boundaries,” he said.
Barau assured that the National Assembly would provide the necessary legislative backing and oversight to ensure the success of the NWDC in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
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He urged the stakeholders to focus on building systems that would directly improve the lives of the people, stressing that leadership would ultimately be judged by outcomes rather than meetings.
In his welcome address, Hussaini said the North-West, which once powered Nigeria’s economy through agriculture and textile production, now grapples with high poverty and unemployment levels.
He said that although the region contributes over 40 per cent of Nigeria’s agricultural output and hosts some of the largest markets in West Africa, it ranks high in poverty and out of school children’s statistics.
Hussaini attributed the situation to years of development pursued in isolation by states and agencies, leading to duplication of efforts and minimal long-term impact.
He added that insecurity had continued to drain the regional economy through disrupted farming activities, loss of productivity and capital flight.
According to him, the creation of the NWDC and the Ministry of Regional Development marked a new approach that recognises the need for coordinated regional solutions.
He outlined four priority areas for recovery: Security and stability, infrastructure and connectivity, agriculture and industrial value addition, and human capital development.
He said, “No economy can grow where farmers cannot farm and traders cannot trade,” Hussaini said, calling for investment in transport corridors, energy, irrigation, storage facilities and broadband infrastructure.£
Hussaini said that processing agricultural produce such as grains, tomatoes, cotton, hides and livestock within the region would create jobs and boost economic growth.
The Chairman of the occasion and former Vice-President, Namadi Sambo, said the NWDC must move beyond planning to delivering tangible benefits to citizens.
Sambo said the Act establishing the commission provides a framework for coordinated infrastructure development, economic growth, social transformation and environmental sustainability.
He cited abandoned power projects in Kaduna, including a 250-Megawatt thermal plant and a 30Megawatt Gurara hydropower project, as examples of the consequences of poor coordination.
He also referenced a long delayed multi purpose dam project expected to generate 40 megawatts of electricity, irrigate 35,000 hectares of farmland and supply water to Kaduna metropolis.
Sambo called for collaboration with private investors, development partners and power agencies to revive stalled projects and expand renewable energy across the region.
The participants at the summit agreed that the revival of the North-West was critical to Nigeria’s overall economic growth and called for sustained collaborations to translate discussions into measurable development outcomes.
NAN
