18th January, 2018
The UK Department for International Development (DFID) spent N2 billion to fund Child Development Grand Programme (CDGP) to support nursing mothers and pregnant women in Zamfara from 2014 to date.
Hajiya Fatima Musa, an official of Save the Children International, the NGO implementing the programme in the state, disclosed this in Gusau on Thursday at the Bi-annual Meeting of Media and Civil Society Organisations on Citizens’ Participation on Social Protection issues organised by the Save the Children.
CDGP is a DFID-funded project in Jigawa and Zamfara, implemented by Save the Children International.
Musa said two local government areas of Anka and Tsafe were selected for the programme, which started in 2014, aimed at supporting pregnant women and nursing mothers with cash of N4,000 each to take care of their babies for a period of two years.
According to her, a total of 39,781 pregnant women and nursing mothers registered for the programme in Anka and Tsafe from 2014 to date.
“Out of the number of registered beneficiaries, 15, 267 have been discharged from the programme, including those who successfully graduated after spending two years, and those who were removed due to various reasons such as miscarriage, still birth and fraud.
“So far in our record, we have over 24,000 active beneficiaries in the two local government areas.”
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She said the programme was aimed at supporting pregnant women and nursing mothers, especially those in rural communities take care of their babies considering the level of poverty among people in the area.
She added that the main target of the CDGP programme was to ensure effective child care, growth and development.
She commended the support and commitment given to the programme by the media and civil society organisations in the state.
In his remark, the Chairman of the state Social Protection Platform, Alhaji Nasiru Biabiki, commended Save the Children and DFID over various programmes, which enhanced social protection activities in the state.
Biabiki also commended the chairmen of Tsafe and Anka for supporting social protection activities in the state.
He said the platform had been engaging NGOs and major stakeholders to ensure that the state government implemented Federal Government Social Protection Policy.