Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi has said that his administration is committed to the development of both the rural and the remote communities of the state.
He said that the development was being driven through the administration’s sustained support to the state’s Community and Social Development Agency (CSDA).
Bello said this at the Outcome Evaluation Report Presentation on the World Bank-Assisted Community and Social Development Projects (CSDP) in the state on Thursday in Lokoja.
The governor, represented by Dr Folashade Ayoade-Arike; the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), said that his government would continue to support the agency to deliver on its mandate to the remote and the rural communities of the state.
He said that his government from its inception to date had paid up-to-date its counterpart contributions for the CSDP intervention projects in the state.
The governor said that he had mandated the CSDA to drive the COVID-19 Action Recovery And Economic Stimulus for Result Programme also known as Nigeria-CARES Project in the state.
He said that the choice of the agency to manage Nigeria-CARES Project was in view of its proven track record of excellent performance in the management of community and social development activities in the state.
Bello described the CSDA as a veritable instrument for the realisation of his administration’s new direction blueprint in the rural and the remote communities.
He added that the objectives of the agency were in tandem and on the same trajectory with the New Direction Agenda.
Speaking earlier, Mr Raphael Okomoda, the chairman of the Board of the CSDA, said that the agency had successfully implemented 440 micro projects in the state since its inception.
He noted that the “Outcome Evaluation” was in line with the protocols and practices of the World Bank as every project is expected to give account of its performance to its strategic stakeholders at intervals and at the end.
Mallam Momoh Dauda, the General Manager of the agency, promised to sustain its efforts.
Dauda also said that the community-Driven Development approach deployed had helped the agency in recording successes.
He said that the next intervention phase of the project would focus on education, health, water and nutrition.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the highlight of the occasion was the presentation of an overview of CSDP – Additional Financing, by Ayo Oludare, its Monitoring and Evaluation Manager.
It also featured the presentation of report of an Independent Study by Dr Omada and the Outcome Evaluation report by Dr. S.A. Tiamiyu.
