The Benue State Budget and Economic Planning Commission (BSBEPC), in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Nigeria, Enugu Field Office, has strengthened the capacity of Local Government Committees on Food and Nutrition (LGCFNs) to coordinate nutrition interventions and translate policy priorities into action at the grassroots.
The four-day capacity-building workshop, held at the NANN Complex Hall in Makurdi, brought together local government chairmen, LGCFN members and other stakeholders to strengthen multisectoral coordination, resource mobilisation, data management, accountability and nutrition planning across the state’s Local Government Areas (LGAs).
The training also focused on mapping available resources and interventions, including opportunities under the Domestic Resource Mobilisation (DRM) and Child Nutrition Fund (CNF) frameworks, as well as developing practical annual nutrition work plans for the LGAs.
Speaking at the workshop, the Director General of BSBEPC, Professor Jerome Andohol, underscored the need to strengthen nutrition interventions against the backdrop of Nigeria’s unfavourable infant mortality situation.
He said the Benue State Government was investing resources in addressing malnutrition because of the critical role nutrition plays in child survival, growth and development.
He stressed that investment in children was an investment in the future of Nigeria and called for early action involving government and relevant stakeholders.
Professor Andohol also emphasised the need to ensure that child nutrition resources were effectively utilised and translated into tangible benefits in communities.
He urged participants to apply the knowledge and skills acquired during the training in their respective LGAs.
He appreciated the Executive Governor of Benue State, the Very Rev. Fr. Dr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia, for providing an enabling environment that contributed to the successful organisation of the workshop.
The Permanent Secretary of BSBEPC and Chairman of the State Committee on Food and Nutrition, Mr. Orinya Orgenyi, described food and nutrition as fundamental to the wellbeing, productivity and future development of the population.
Orgenyi said Benue’s agricultural potential must be matched by improved nutrition outcomes, calling for greater attention to children, pregnant and breastfeeding women and other vulnerable groups.
He stressed that improved nutrition could not be achieved through the health sector alone, noting the need for collaboration across health, agriculture, education, water resources, social protection, and women and social development.
He also urged LGCFNs to make nutrition a priority in their plans, budgets and development programmes.
The collaboration with UNICEF Nigeria, Enugu Field Office, supports government-led efforts to improve nutrition outcomes through technical assistance, capacity strengthening, resource mobilisation, evidence-based planning, accountability and multisectoral coordination.
UNICEF’s technical support also focused on strengthening systems for financing, coordinating, implementing and monitoring nutrition interventions.
Participants were guided on how LGCFNs could identify nutrition priorities, map available resources, advocate for domestic budget allocations, strengthen linkages with the CNF, improve accountability for funds and commodities, and use data to guide decision-making.
The Lead Facilitator and UNICEF Independent Consultant on Public Finance for Children (PF4C), Dr. David Okelue Ugwunta, provided a practical framework linking nutrition governance with financing, implementation and accountability.
Dr. Ugwunta emphasised that nutrition was a shared responsibility requiring collaboration among government institutions, sectors, development partners and community structures rather than being treated solely as a health-sector concern.
He explained that effective multisectoral coordination enables stakeholders to identify gaps, minimise duplication, maximise available resources and ensure that interventions are better targeted to vulnerable populations.
He also linked coordination to resource mobilisation and public financial management, urging participants to go beyond identifying nutrition needs to translating them into costed activities, budget lines, domestic resource mobilisation actions and realistic annual work plans.
Dr. Ugwunta highlighted the importance of budget advocacy, nutrition budget tagging and accountability for releases and expenditure, stressing that securing a budget allocation is only the beginning.
He said nutrition resources must be tracked from budget to release, expenditure and implementation, while commodities must be monitored through the supply chain to ensure that intended beneficiaries receive them.
He further connected domestic financing to the CNF, emphasising the importance of understanding eligibility requirements, counterpart financing and the steps LGAs need to take to access co-financing opportunities.
He also stressed the need to protect nutrition funds and commodities from diversion and weak controls, noting that effective nutrition financing goes beyond mobilising resources to ensuring they are properly managed and ultimately reach the women and children for whom they are intended.
In his goodwill message, the Benue State Team Lead of Helen Keller International, Mr. Wilson Ameh, emphasised the importance of nutrition-specific interventions, particularly those addressing micronutrient deficiencies and providing essential vitamins.
He said the training would strengthen LGCFNs’ understanding of their responsibilities and improve coordination with relevant sectors, while stressing the importance of effective monitoring and evaluation and the use of implementation evidence to strengthen decision-making at the local government level.
The workshop also featured technical presentations from government institutions and academia.
Mrs. Ann Tor of the State Primary Health Care Board highlighted the importance of the first 1,000 days of life, from conception to a child’s second birthday, for physical growth, brain development and long-term health.
Mrs. Apeh Martha, Director in the Planning and Development Department of BSBEPC, presented on the National and Benue State Nutrition Policy and Strategy, with emphasis on the role of LGAs in translating policy priorities into grassroots programmes and activities.
Dr. Mrs. Evelyn Tersoo Abiem of Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University, Makurdi, addressed nutrition governance, focusing on the coordination and accountability relationship between the State Committee on Food and Nutrition (SCFN) and LGCFNs, as well as the importance of clearly defined institutional roles.
Mrs. Ruth Asor, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, led a session on nutrition data, monitoring, evaluation and reporting under the theme “From Data to Decision,” emphasising the importance of generating reliable data and using it to inform planning, resource allocation and effective programme implementation.
The four-day workshop provided participants with an integrated understanding of nutrition governance, policy implementation, resource mobilisation, data management, monitoring and evaluation, accountability and annual work planning.
A key outcome was the clarification of the respective roles of SCFNs and LGCFNs and the strengthening of the link between state-level policy and grassroots implementation.
The organisers expect participants to return to their LGAs with improved capacity to coordinate nutrition activities, mobilise resources, strengthen community participation, improve reporting and accountability, and develop realistic nutrition work plans that respond to local needs.
The workshop underscored the importance of sustained collaboration among the Benue State Government, local governments, UNICEF and other development partners, traditional institutions, civil society organisations and communities in improving nutrition outcomes and advancing the survival, development and future productivity of children in the state.
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