Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dr. Abbas Tajuddeen, has tasked the newly established North West Development Commission (NWDC) with exploring multiple sources of funding to fulfill its mandate of promoting growth and development for the improved well-being of people in the region.
Dr Abbas Tajuddeen, made the call while inaugurating the House Committee on North West Development Commission at the National Assembly complex Abuja.
The Speaker, who championed the House version of the bill that led to the establishment of the commission, noted that the event marks the commencement of a new era in their collective efforts to address the unique challenges and fully harness the immense potential of the North-West geopolitical zone.
While acknowledging that the North-West holds a pivotal place in Nigeria’s economic and social landscape, the Speaker said historically, the zone has been the cradle of agricultural excellence, producing staple crops such as millet, sorghum, and groundnuts in unmatched quantities.
He emphasized the region with over 47 million Nigerans was not just a demographic power house but also a reservoir of cultural and economic potential constrained by daunting challenges over the years.
“Over the past two decades, the region has been plagued by insecurity, environmental degradation, and systemic neglect. The once-flourishing textile industry in Kaduna and Kano, which employed over 500,000 workers in the 1980s, now engages fewer than 20,000 due to policy inertia and rising insecurity”
Dr Abbas Tajuddeen however, urged leadership of the Commission to embrace multi-stakeholder approach, engaging state governments, traditional institutions, civil society and the private sectors to ensure sustainable and impactful interventions in the region.
He equally commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for his visionary leadership that has laid the foundation for a more inclusive and equitable Nigeria capable of addressing structural challenges facing the nation.
Earlier, the chairman house Committee on North West Development Commission Dr Sulaiman Abubakar Gumi, said the inauguration has avails members of the committee opportunity to interact and strengthen collaboration and appealed for maximum cooperation to achieve impactful results.
He said the committee’s mandates include addressing matters related to the NWDC; coordinating and monitoring the activities of development partners, engaging agencies, departments, multilateral organizations and NGOs to facilitate rehabilitation, reconstruction, recovery, resettlement for effective transformation in the North West.
Others are collaborating with private sector initiatives to promote regional development; harmonizing government initiatives aimed at rehabilitation and sustainable growth; reviewing and approving annual budget estimates.
