President and Permanent Representative of Centre for Convention on Democratic Integrity (CCDI) to the United Nations, Mr. Olufemi Aduwo, has applauded Kaduna Governor, Nasir El-Rufai on the state’s 2020 budget, especially allocations to the social sector.
Aduwo, who is currently attending World Bank/IMF Boards of Governors Meetings in Washington DC, was full of praises for the governor for such bold vision, sacrifice, resilience and toughness to take such proactive and people-oriented initiative, his action was unprecedented, except during the period of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo as the Premier of Western Region, where education received the largest share of government budget.
Free education up to senior secondary level was previously enjoyed only by female students, in the state, while boys had theirs guaranteed only up to junior secondary level. From 2020, every child in Kaduna State is required to have 12 years of free, compulsory primary and secondary education. The total budgetary allocation for Education, N64.64 billion (25.07 per cent); Health, N39.61 billion (15.36 per cent) and Infrastructure N66.34 billion (25.72 per cent).
“We call on World Bank and other development partners, which l know has assistance for education and health provision, to extend hands of cooperation to the state in achieving this laudable project.Some few states in the past had benefited from such generous assistance.
“Education in every sense is one of the fundamental factors of development. ln fact, the second side of democracy is development”, he added.
“El Rufai has proved the pundit wrong that the governors were self centred and lack capacity to initiate people-focused programme.”
Aduwo, therefore, called on other governors to give priority to social sector in 2020 budget.