By joshua Birthday: Nigerian Post Celebrates Barr. Ladi Jatto OON – A Ceiling Breaker, An Upwardly Mobile Work In Progress, A Shining Example For Nigerian Women.
On behalf of the Management and Staff of the Nigerian Post Newspaper, I, Abu Micheal, Publisher/Editor, heartily felicitate with a dear friend, a wonderful pillar of support to this newspaper, and an Amazon of inestimable value, Barr. Ladi Ahmed Jatto, OON, State Project Coordinator, Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL), Kogi State, on the auspicious occasion of her birthday.
Today, we do not just celebrate a birthday; we celebrate grace, grit and greatness. We celebrate a woman who has broken ceilings and continues to break new grounds, an upwardly mobile work in progress whose story remains a shining example for Nigerian women and a textbook for public service excellence.
Barr. Ladi Jatto is a goal-getter anytime, any day. From her debut as Special Adviser on Environment and Physical Development where she facilitated the historic visit of Baroness Valerie Amos, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, to Kogi State in 2013 and opened the doors to a lasting partnership between UNDP and Kogi State, she has proven that preparation meeting opportunity creates impact.
Her trajectory as Project Coordinator of the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP), where she earned the World Bank FY19 Best Performing State in the North Central award and multiple federal commendations for reducing vulnerability to gully erosion and reversing land degradation, to her current role as State Project Coordinator of ACReSAL, is a story of consistency, competence and character.
In less than two years under Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo, you have moved Kogi ACReSAL from compliance to impact. Under your watch, Kogi has restored over 11,064 hectares of degraded land, restored over 3,000 hectares through agroforestry and tree planting, rolled out erosion control structures, climate-smart agriculture and community livelihood support. You have put tractors, seedlings and real money in the hands of women and youths. It is no wonder the National Project Coordinating Unit rated Kogi among the Top 3 Performing States in the 2024/2025 cycle, and your beneficiaries now fondly call you “Mama ACReSAL.”
We in the Nigerian Post Newspaper are proud of your exploits. Your National Honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) conferred by former President Muhammadu Buhari, your recent recognition by the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), The Presidency, your Award of Excellence for Outstanding Performance by APWEN, your Ambassador of Ethics and Global Citizen of Conscience Award, your Most Distinguished Woman Personality of the Year, your Strategic Leadership Award for Excellence in Good Governance, and the description of you as a “National Hero” by Prof. Salisu Usman Ogbo, former Rector of Kogi State Polytechnic, are not just decorations; they are national and international validations of your exceptional service.
You are a trailblazer who blends World Bank technical discipline with grassroots empathy, a technocrat with a humane heart, a pride to your team for your transparency and accountability.
On this special day, we pray that Almighty God grants you many more years in sound health, renewed wisdom, and greater heights. May your light continue to shine brighter.
Happy Birthday, Barr. Ladi Ahmed Jatto, OON!
Abu Micheal
Publisher/Editor
The Nigerian Post Newspaper