Distinguished Delegates, esteemed colleagues and friends, Ladies and Gentlemen, It gives me great pleasure to extend to you all a very warm welcome on behalf of Bako Kontagora Development Foundation, and to say how grateful we are to UNESCO Abuja who have accepted our invitation to partner in convening this Webinar Series.
Today’s session is devoted to the theme POST COVID-19 GOOD GOVERNANCE – PROSPECTS AND CHALLENGES FOR PROMOTING THE SOCIO- ECONOMIC WELL-BEING OF THE URBAN AND RURAL MASSES.
PART 1: HUMAN DEVELOPMENT.
This is a theme which is particularly relevant in the context of our common aspiration to attain inclusive and sustainable development on the global, regional and national level.
It is an opportune time to discuss problems of mutual interest and exchange ideas on the innovative and cost-effective ways the government and good governance stakeholders can improve human capital, good governance post COVID-19 to achieve
key Sustainable Development Goals.Last month, the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the COVID-19
pandemic has “exposed the fragility of our world” and “laid bare risks we have ignored for decades”. The pandemic has thrived amid the inequalities in our societies and the gaps in our systems. Racial and social inequalities, poor governance, poor infrastructures for education/ healthcare and the politicization of social welfare
programs – all of these put people at risk.
It is gratifying to note that the agenda of todays webinar covers a wide range of very interesting topics relating to social welfare programs, components of quality educational provision, literacy for the rural/urban poor, gender dimension in planning governance, mental health, environmental stability and nutrition for the rural/urban
poor to prevent undernourishment.
This webinar series is focused on good governance using the Ibrahim index of African Governance (IIAG) as framework.
The four IIAG good governance categories are
1.Human development.
2.Safety and rule of law.
3.Participation and Human Rights.
4.Sustainable economic opportunity.
In this part 1 of the series, our focus shall be on HUMAN DEVELOPMENT which has WELFARE, HEALTH AND EDUCATION as sub-categories. As earlier stated discussions shall be centered around topics that are most relevant to achieving the targets of UN SDGS and the socio-economic well-being of Nigerians post COVID-19, which can also be adopted by other African countries.
I wish to take this opportunity to welcome the participants from Ivory Coast, United Arab Emirates (UAE), other African countries and the United Kingdom, these participants have joined this series of webinar for the first time.
Three months ago, BKD Foundation organized a webinar on “IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON RURAL EDUCATION: A LOOK AT THE FORGOTTEN BOTTOM, GHETTOS, SLUMS AND THE UNDERPRIVILEGED”. The webinar was attended by over 80 participants with representatives from INGO’s, Niger State Government, Experienced Educators, Students, and Stakeholders in the Education sector.
Speakers and participants from all over the world shared their experiences on the challenges and best-practice solutions for scaling up successful models in the Nigerian Education sector as it should evolve from passive learning to active multi-sensory holistic learning.Ladies and Gentlemen,
Please allow me once again to thank our long-standing and reliable technical partners, UNESCO Abuja who helped organize this.
Against this backdrop, I would like to welcome Dr Amina M. Baloni, Commissioner for Health, Kaduna State, who has been in the forefront of women’s empowerment activities and education in Northern Nigeria.
I am also extremely glad to welcome Prof. Adepoju Adeshola, DG, Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria. We are very delighted to see your active engagement in initiatives targeting environmental stability.
To our distinguished speakers and discussants, Prof. Nazifi A. Darma, Senior Lecturer, University of Abuja,
Ndidi O. Nwuneli Managing Partner, Sahel Consulting Agriculture and Nutrition Limited, Hakeem Subair, Founder & CEO, One Million Teachers, DR Olunifesi A. SURAJ, Senior Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication, UNILAG, Aisha Abdullahi Bubah, Psychological Services and Consultancy, we are extremely grateful for this opportunity to learn from your unique experience and expertise.
I am confident that today’s event will help reinforce partnerships and facilitate the exchange of successful, applicable models and practices for the promotion of the socio economic well-being of the urban and rural masses.
My thanks also to our Moderators, Olushola Macaulay and Zubairu Babajide Atta for accepting to moderate.
I look forward to thought-provoking presentations and fruitful discussions.
Finally, and most importantly, to young adults around the world, I say: Think big and be bold. We count on you for your creativity and your fresh ideas. Your voice and engagement are needed more than ever, particularly as the world
responds to this unprecedented crisis.
We’re all in this together, and we can only prevail together.
I thank you