By joshua 
ANEEJ URGES GOV ODODO TO SIGN SOCIAL PROTECTION POLICY INTO LAW IN KOGI
The Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ) has called on Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo to urgently sign the Social Protection Policy into law to ensure seamless implementation across Kogi State.
The appeal was made by ANEEJ’s Kogi State Coordinator, Halimat Oyiza Sadiq, during an outreach and monitoring visit to Kuroko community in Adavi LGA over the weekend.
Sadiq, accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, and the National Orientation Agency, said the visit revealed critical challenges affecting smooth implementation of social protection programmes.
“ANEEJ, in collaboration with BROT, NISD, and the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, has drafted a policy awaiting the Governor’s assent. The bill is long overdue,” she said.
She explained that the ACT NAIJA Project, which supports civil society action to strengthen social protection, aims to improve inclusivity in the social protection system and ensure vulnerable Nigerians live with dignity and improved livelihoods.
The outreach to Kuroko, she added, was designed to raise awareness on the need for a clean, credible social register for the Social Safety Protection Programme.
“The purpose is to cushion the effects of poverty on vulnerable Nigerians. ANEEJ is working to create awareness of the various windows available to the people,” Sadiq said.
She noted that stakeholders from implementing ministries were brought together to prevent beneficiaries from being short-changed, adding that several irregularities had emerged from the disbursement of Conditional Cash Transfers.
“We are here to support vulnerable groups through monitoring to close gaps in the process. Many beneficiaries complained of being short-changed and underpaid. They benefited, but didn’t receive the correct amount. These are gaps government must address,” she said.
“ANEEJ is engaging the Kogi State Government on the need to pass the draft bill before the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development into law. The need for a Social Protection Law in Kogi is overdue. We want a structured framework for social protection activities.”
Sadiq expressed optimism that with the Governor’s assent, the remaining two years of the ANEEJ project, 2025–2027, would record significant impact.
ANEEJ, co-funded by the European Union, is non-political and non-religious. It is implementing the programme in Adavi, Igalamela, and Lokoja LGAs to ensure the poorest benefit.
Bridget Okpanachi James, Head of the Conditional Cash Transfer project, acknowledged implementation challenges but assured that gaps were being addressed. “Some officials have been identified and sanctioned,” she said, urging citizens to provide accurate information for the social register to avoid disqualification. She noted that other interventions — TraderMoni, Fadama, Kogi Cares, CSDA, and School Feeding — depend on an accurate register.
Mark Olufemi Babatunde of the Ministry of Women Affairs decried rising drug addiction among youth, describing it as a humanitarian crisis. He said the state is working with the NDLEA on rehabilitation and plans to repatriate non-indigenes loitering on the streets.
ANEEJ’s National Head, David Ugolor, represented by Tesley Otuh, commended Kogi stakeholders for their commitment to the programme’s success.
Adavi LGA Chairman, Hon. Rasheed Bashir Okatem, represented by Chief of Staff Usman Obaro Abuh, alongside NOA’s Momoh Sani Ozovehe and Community Mobilizer Etudaye Musa, pledged to intensify enlightenment campaigns and ensure proper registration.
They agreed to work in synergy to prevent proxy registration, double entries, and banking issues, and called for customized ATM PINs to stop beneficiaries from being short-changed.