…As Cross River Advocates Bottom-Up Development Planning
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Enugu Field Office has convened regional stakeholders from Cross River, Enugu and Benue states for a strategic consultation aimed at developing the 2028–2032 Country Programme Document (CPD), the framework that will guide UNICEF’s interventions over the next five years.
The meeting also provided a platform for Cross River State to advocate a bottom-up approach to development planning, with the state government stressing that sustainable progress can only be achieved when communities actively participate in shaping programmes that affect their lives.
Declaring the session open, the UNICEF Chief of Field Office, Ms. Juliet Chiluwe, described the exercise as a critical sub-national stakeholder consultation designed to foster a unified development agenda focused on child survival, nutrition, healthcare and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH).
She said the Country Programme Document remains UNICEF’s principal instrument for advancing children’s rights in support of Nigeria’s national development priorities and global humanitarian commitments.
According to Chiluwe, the consultation allows government and development partners to review evidence, identify existing deprivations and bottlenecks, assess cross-cutting challenges through an equity lens, and translate those findings into strategic priorities for the next programme cycle.
Speaking on behalf of the Cross River State Government, the Commissioner for International Donor Coordination, Dr. Hippolatus Lukpata, commended UNICEF for bringing stakeholders from the three states together to plan for the wellbeing of women and children.
Lukpata strongly advocated grassroots-driven planning, noting that programmes designed without local input often fail to achieve lasting impact.
“I hope that you will benefit from the lessons learnt from previous interventions and carefully reflect them in this new programme. Any plan that is cast in stone may not work. Planning must move from the bottom up to the top in this next country document,” he said.
The Commissioner urged participants to actively engage in the exercise, describing the CPD as a shared blueprint for building a healthier and more prosperous future for women and children.
Also speaking, Ms. Rosie Benedict of the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning said the consultation would ensure that UNICEF’s next programme aligns with Nigeria’s National Development Plan while responding to the realities and priorities of communities at the grassroots.
On his part, the Director of Administration and Planning at the Benue State Economic and Planning Commission, Dr. Dominic Achioko, applauded UNICEF for its sustained commitment to maternal and child survival and pledged Benue State’s support for the successful implementation of the new programme.
Earlier, the Permanent Secretary of the Enugu State Economic Planning Commission, Mr. Nnayelugo Dan Onyishi, welcomed participants and described the consultation as a timely opportunity to strengthen policies and interventions that would improve the wellbeing of mothers and children, particularly during the critical first 1,000 days of a child’s life.
The Cross River State delegation to the regional consultation included the Director-General of the Cross River State Health Insurance Scheme, Dr. Godwin Iyala; the Statistician-General, Mrs. Akedo Okoi Edet; the Permanent Secretary, State Planning Commission, Mr. Kingsley Eyibio; the State Coordinator of the Network of Water and Sanitation (NEWSAN), Mr. Anthony Kedang, alongside other senior government officials.
By Nakanda Iyadim
