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Palliative: Gov Yusuf urges wealthy Nigerians to emulate Dangote
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State Governor Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf has urged wealthy Nigerians to emulate Aliko Dangote by supporting the government in the provision of palliative to cushion the harsh economic condition in the country.
KANO FOCUS reports that Governor Yusuf said this during the flag-off of the Aliko Dangote Foundation’s National Rice Relief Programme, aimed at distributing over 1,000,000 10kg bags of rice across the 774 local government areas of the 36 states and FCT in Nigeria from March to early April 2024.
He said: “I do not have enough words to express my heartfelt gratitude to Alhaji Aliko Dangote on behalf of the good people of Kano State.
“This is because the gesture he is offering today will undoubtedly alleviate the burden of many families facing economic hardship in our state. I urge all other wealthy individuals and businesses in our community to take heed of this noble example set by the Dangote Group and extend similar gestures of support to those in need in our dear state.”
The Governor said his administration has also his administration has also procured grains in large quantity which will be distributed to all the 484 wards across the 44 Local Government areas of the State. We have also designated over 90 feeding centres across the eight metropolitan Local Government Areas were over 90,000 Muslims are being feed with breakfast daily.
Meanwhile, vulnerable, and disadvantaged people in Kano state, have expressed gratitude to the foremost Philanthropist, Aliko Dangote for the distribution of rice to various households in the state.
Apart from Kano, the program implemented through the Aliko Dangote Foundation is a Million Bags of rice planned to grace hundreds of homes in the country.
Recipients of the largesse in Kano, described the gesture as a divine intervention to improve livelihoods
A cross section, consisting of widows, orphans, vulnerable and the less privileged lamented the current unfavorable situation arising from high cost of foodstuff and other items.
“We can no longer provide three square meals for our families,” said a physically challenge man.
A physically challenged, Rabiu Umar, 55, said apart from water, food is important especially for our little children.
Rabiu said before now he could fend for his family of 12 despite his disability and was a proud father and husband before the high cost of foodstuff.
“The situation has reduced my status as a bread winner to my family,” said another recipient.
Ibrahim Musa, 58, of Unguwa Uku said hunger has dangerous consequences for any society. Hence, his gratitude to God for making it possible for Aliko to undertake the huge project for the benefit of the people of Kano and Nigeria.
“This shows that the son of Kano, Aliko has a large heart and is concerned for his people and Nigeria as a whole.
Nana Aisha, aged 84, said Aliko had shown good leadership qualities since he was young and continues to exhibit same.
“We will continue to pray for his progress and for his businesses to accelerate,” she added.
A visually impaired, Mallam Mohammadu said he was impressed that the Rice program is for the whole Country.
According to him, “hunger is everywhere, we hear stories of food being hijacked and so on, so Dangote has done the right thing for Nigeria.”
Salisu Buhari, 68, from Hotoro, said: “We are grateful to Aliko Dangote because it is not easy to cough out plenty of money to buy so many bags of rice for the people. This gesture deserves commendation.
Malama Asabe, 70, from Katsina state but resident in Kano, said she never had a child in her life, and has depended on friends and relatives for her livelihood.
She said: “But I had to hit the streets to fend for myself because things are becoming too difficult for me”.
A representative of widows, Malama Fatima Mohammed said petty trading could no longer put food on the table for their orphaned children.
While commending Mr. Dangote for the palliative, Mrs Fatima appealed to ADF to focus more attention on orphans.
Dangote Donates 40 Wheelchairs To Physically Challenge Persons In Kano
Managing Director of the Aliko Dangote Foundation, ADF, Mrs Zouera Youssoufou has announced that the ADF was donating 40 wheelchairs to the physically challenge persons who were also beneficiaries of the rice palliative of the programme of the company.
Speaking Mrs Youssoufou said she was making the announcement on behalf of the Group President of the company Aliko Dangote.
Kano State Governor Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf has urged wealthy Nigerians to emulate Aliko Dangote by supporting the government in the provision of palliative to cushion the harsh economic condition in the country.
Governor Yusuf said this during the flag-off of the Aliko Dangote Foundation’s National Rice Relief Programme, aimed at distributing over 1,000,000 10kg bags of rice across the 774 local government areas of the 36 states and FCT in Nigeria from March to early April 2024.
He said: “I do not have enough words to express my heartfelt gratitude to Alhaji Aliko Dangote on behalf of the good people of Kano State.
“This is because the gesture he is offering today will undoubtedly alleviate the burden of many families facing economic hardship in our state. I urge all other wealthy individuals and businesses in our community to take heed of this noble example set by the Dangote Group and extend similar gestures of support to those in need in our dear state.”
The Governor said his administration has also his administration has also procured grains in large quantity which will be distributed to all the 484 wards across the 44 Local Government areas of the State. We have also designated over 90 feeding centres across the eight metropolitan Local Government Areas were over 90,000 Muslims are being feed with breakfast daily.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Kano State Government says it has executed 1,508 development projects worth more than N928 billion across the state’s 44 local government areas since Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf assumed office, with about 80 per cent of constituency projects awarded between 2023 and 2025 already completed.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Commissioner for Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation, Comrade Nura Iro Ma’aji Sumaila, disclosed this during an international press briefing on the administration’s infrastructure development programme.
According to Comrade Sumaila, the projects cover critical sectors including roads, urban renewal, education, healthcare, security and other social infrastructure.
He said 799 of the projects have been completed, while 709 are at various stages of execution. He added that the state is also implementing 619 constituency projects through members of the Kano State House of Assembly.
The commissioner noted that about 80 per cent of the constituency projects have been completed. However, he said some projects remain unfinished because of rising construction costs caused by inflation.
He said the government has submitted a request to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf for an upward review of contract sums to enable contractors complete the affected projects.
Breakdown of projects
Comrade Sumaila said the administration spent over N169 billion on urban renewal projects, including road rehabilitation, drainage construction and other metropolitan infrastructure.
He said another N118 billion was committed to constructing five-kilometre roads in 38 local government areas to improve connectivity across the state.
According to him, the government also awarded contracts worth over N6.8 billion for the construction of Kano State Neighbourhood Watch security divisions in 36 local government areas.
He added that rural infrastructure projects covering education, healthcare and other social interventions across the 44 local government areas account for contracts valued at more than N397 billion, while other ongoing projects have a combined value of about N255 billion.
Commitment to transparency
The commissioner said the Ministry of Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation would continue to ensure compliance with due process and technical standards in the execution of government projects.
He said the ministry’s mandate includes monitoring projects to ensure value for money and prudent utilisation of public resources.
According to him, the administration’s investments in infrastructure are intended to improve mobility, strengthen security, expand access to education and healthcare, improve water supply and stimulate economic growth across the state.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as the highest-ranked sub-national government in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for education spending, according to the latest Sub-National Education Spending Index developed by the University of Paris.
KANO FOCUS reports that the ranking places Kano State first among 209 first-level sub-national governments across 15 ECOWAS member countries, underscoring the state’s growing reputation for prioritising investment in education.
According to the published index, Kano topped the rankings with an overall S-WAESI score of 87.21, outperforming other leading regions, including Dakar and Saint-Louis in Senegal. Lagos State was the second Nigerian state on the list, ranking 16th overall.
The assessment evaluated states and regions using the S-WAESI (Sub-National Weighted Aggregate Education Spending Index) methodology, which measures government commitment to education through indicators such as actual education expenditure, spending per student, budget execution, education priority, transparency and evidence-based reporting.
The methodology assigns 35 points to actual education spending, 25 points to spending per student, 20 points to budget execution, 10 points to education priority and 10 points to transparency.
The report indicated that Kano excelled largely due to its strong actual education spending and budget execution, making it the best-performing sub-national government in the region.
The ranking covered states, regions, districts and municipalities across Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Togo, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde.
Kano State Accountability Forum on Education (K-SAFE) said the recognition reflects Kano State Government’s sustained investment in expanding access to education, improving school infrastructure and strengthening educational planning and budget implementation.
KANO FOCUS reports that the achievement is expected to further boost the state’s profile as a leader in education reform within West Africa and provide additional momentum for ongoing efforts to improve learning outcomes across the state.
The latest ranking comes amid renewed attention on education financing across ECOWAS, with experts increasingly emphasising transparent budgeting, efficient resource utilisation and sustained public investment as critical drivers of quality education.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the World Bank-supported HOPE Governance Programme after qualifying for a total of $3.5 million in performance-based incentives for implementing key governance, education and healthcare reforms.
KANO FOCUS reports that the World Bank, through the HOPE Governance Programme domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, approved $27 million in incentives for states that successfully met the Year Zero Disbursement-Linked Results (DLRs).
The National Coordinator of the HOPE Governance Programme, Assad Hassan, announced the incentives on Tuesday in Abuja during a retreat attended by commissioners, permanent secretaries and directors of budget and planning from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
A statement issued by the programme’s Communications Officer, Joe Mutah, said the incentives were based on the recommendations of the Interim Independent Verification Agent, which assessed states’ performance against agreed reform indicators.
Kano ranked among the highest-performing states, qualifying for incentives under three separate reform indicators.
The state will receive $1.5 million under Disbursement-Linked Result (DLR) 2.1 for adopting comprehensive guidelines for the preparation and submission of consolidated work plans for the state basic education budget.
It also qualified for another $1.5 million under DLR 2.2, which recognises states that adopted comprehensive guidelines for consolidated work plans for state primary healthcare budgets.
In addition, Kano secured $500,000 under DLR 2.3 for adopting harmonised budget guidelines and a unified chart of accounts for local governments.
Altogether, the state is expected to receive $3.5 million, making it one of the top-performing states under the programme.
Only five states—Bayelsa, Borno, Kano, Kebbi and Yobe—qualified for both the education and healthcare planning incentives, earning $3 million each from the two indicators alone.
Kano further distinguished itself by qualifying under the local government budgeting reform indicator, increasing its total allocation to $3.5 million.
The state also featured among 15 states that met the requirements under DLR 4.1, which rewards states for publishing their 2025 Citizens Budget for basic education and primary healthcare by February 28, 2025. Each qualifying state under this indicator will receive $500,000.
Other states that qualified under DLR 4.1 are Abia, Bayelsa, Borno, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Plateau and Yobe.
According to the programme, the performance-based incentives are designed to encourage states to strengthen governance systems, improve budget transparency and enhance planning in the education and primary healthcare sectors.
KANO FOCUS reports that the HOPE Governance Programme is a World Bank-supported initiative implemented through the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning to promote improved public financial management and better service delivery across Nigeria’s states.
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