The Honourable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio has indicated the resolve of the Ministry to strengthen the implementation of the Strategic Implementation Work Plan (SIWP) which is a broader Stakeholders engagement process to strengthen Monitoring and Evaluation framework to eliminate projects duplicity and abandonment in the Niger Delta Region.
The Minister who was represented by the Honourable Minister of State, Senator Omotayo Alasoadura disclosed this at a round table meeting on SIWP with the relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and other Stakeholders on Thursday, March 12th 2020, at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja.
He said that SIWP portal was basically to provide coordinated framework for the implementation of developmental interventions, also to provide joint accountability framework for monitoring and evaluation of projects, and to deliver a strategic response based on shared vision for development by Stakeholders in the Niger Delta Region, as facilitated by the Office of the Vice President in 2016.
According to Sen. Akpabio, SIWP enjoys technical support from the United Kingdom Government via the Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN). He noted that to actualize implementation of the SIWP, the Ministry through the technical support of SDN, developed a digital Information Management System portal (http;//siwp.na) with a Mobile App, imbued with project tracking and GIS features to strengthen Monitoring and Evaluation framework.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Niger Affairs, Mr. Olusade Adesola in his remarks reiterated that the development of the Niger Delta region remains the priority of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari and that Government commitment to this effort has further been strengthened by the vigor to change the narrative of the region by the dedicated leadership of the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Sen. Godswill Akpabio.
“The aim of the round table meeting is to update stakeholders and make discussion around the SIWP in other to increase awareness of the programme, to secure and obtain contributions for robust implementation of this platform by the MNDA and for the Region” he said.
The Permanent Secretary, who identified the absence of an effective coordinating platform that could enable the Ministry monitor which organization is handling which project and those that have benefitted from the various empowerment programmes, said that the deployment of SIWP will greatly support the Ministry’s ability to monitor and coordinate intervention programmes and activities being undertaken in this regard.
Earlier, the Nigeria Country Director, Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN), Dr. Christopher Onosode said, SDN was created for effective monitoring and evaluation by the Ministry within the context of stabilizing security conditions and the reduction of militancy and promotion of concerted development in the Niger Delta Region.
He noted that to address the poor response to the development and security challenges in the Niger Delta, SDN has been supporting dialogue between the Federal Government, key actors and citizens through series of programmes, adding that since the development of SIWP and the Portal, SDN has continued to provide technical assistance to strengthen Ministry of Niger Delta’s internal capacity and processes for effective implementation coordination.
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