From Shafa’atu Suleiman, Sokoto
Sokoto State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning Dr. Abubakar Mohammad Zayyana has warned Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) against submitting ambiguous or poorly planned budgets, insisting that only realistic and programme-based proposals will be accepted going forward.
Dr. Zayyana gave the warning during a training workshop on the development of the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Sector Strategy (MTSS) for Health, Education, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), and Social Protection, organised by the Ministry in collaboration with UNICEF.
He said budgets must now be drawn scientifically, anchored on specific programmes and activities that align with the government’s nine-point Smart Agenda.
According to him, “weak and ambitious planning always leads to failure,” adding that the era of uncoordinated budgeting is over.
In his remarks, Commissioner for Health, Dr. Faruk Abubakar Wurno, directed the Directors of Planning in the ministry and its agencies to ensure their submissions are evidence-based and tailored to the ministry’s objectives.
He cautioned that any proposals not aligned with strategic goals would not be included in the state’s 2026 fiscal year budget.
Chief of UNICEF’s Sokoto Field Office, Mr. Michel Juma, represented by Social Policy Specialist, Malam Isah Ibrahim, urged the state government to maximise the technical support it is receiving as it transitions from traditional budgeting to programme-based budgeting.
He stressed the need for increased financial investment in social sectors to address persistent challenges of multidimensional and monetary poverty.
Earlier, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Hajiya Maryam Ahmad Barade, said Social Protection is being included in the MTSS process for the first time, reflecting the state’s evolving development priorities.
She added that the partnership between Sokoto State Government and UNICEF is yielding positive results across several sectors.
