Headlines
KanSLAM identifies poor family planning as key driver of maternal, child mortality in Kano
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
A coalition of civil society organisations, government officials, and media practitioners under the Kano State Led Accountability Mechanism (KanSLAM) has identified inadequate family planning as a major factor responsible for the high rate of maternal and child mortality in Kano State.
KANO FOCUS reports that the coalition made this known on Thursday during a media parley on the prevention of maternal and child mortality held at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre in Kano.
Cross section of participants
KanSLAM expressed concern that Kano remains one of the states with the highest maternal and child mortality rates in Nigeria, attributing the trend largely to limited access to family planning services, particularly in rural communities.
The group also called on the government to ensure transparency and accountability in the utilisation of funds allocated for the procurement of maternal and child health consumables. It lamented that significant portions of annual budgets are often not effectively utilised for their intended purposes, raising concerns about possible mismanagement and corruption.
Speaking at the event, the Co-chair of KanSLAM, Pharm. Maimuna Yakubu Muhammad, emphasised the critical role of the media in addressing maternal and child mortality through advocacy and public enlightenment.
Pharm. Maimuna Yakubu Muhammad
She urged media organisations to leverage various platforms, including television, radio, newspapers, and digital outlets, to raise awareness about the benefits of family planning and the risks associated with its neglect.
According to her, the media can also help by sharing success stories of women who have benefited from family planning services, addressing misconceptions, and amplifying the voices of healthcare providers and community leaders.
“When women have access to family planning, they can space pregnancies, avoid unintended pregnancies, and access proper healthcare. This leads to reduced complications, fewer unsafe abortions, and better outcomes for both mothers and children,” she said.
Cross section of participants
She further called for improved access to affordable contraceptives, especially in rural areas, strengthening of healthcare services, and sustained community education to dispel myths surrounding family planning.
Maimuna noted that KanSLAM was established in line with international best practices to promote accountability in public resource management, adding that the coalition monitors budget releases and implementation while advising the government on improvements.
Also speaking, the Kano State Team Lead of Pathfinder International, Umar Ibrahim Gombe, said discussions on reducing maternal and neonatal deaths in Northern Nigeria remain crucial, describing such engagements as opportunities to assess government efforts and identify gaps.
Umar Ibrahim Gombe
Similarly, Sahnunu Madaki of the FCDO-supported Lafiya Project commended KanSLAM for organising the parley and pledged continued support for initiatives aimed at reducing maternal mortality in the state.
Sahnunu Madaki
Kano health sector hits 15% budget benchmark, faces funding gaps
Presenting analysis of Kano State’s health financing, Sulaiman Ismail has revealed that the government met the 15 per cent budget benchmark for the sector in 2026, in line with the Abuja Declaration, but significant gaps remain in funding critical services.
Sulaiman Ismail
The report, titled *Kano State MNCH, Reproductive Health and Family Planning Financing Analysis (2024–April 2026)*, examined allocations, releases, and utilisation of funds for maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH), reproductive health (RH), and family planning (FP).
He said findings showed that the health sector accounted for 13 per cent of the state budget in 2024, dropped slightly to 12 per cent in 2025, and rose to 15 per cent in 2026, marking a notable improvement.
Despite the increased allocation, Mr. Ismail highlighted inconsistencies in fund releases and low execution of capital projects, which continue to hinder effective service delivery.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
He also noted that programmes such as MNCH, RH, and FP are largely embedded within primary healthcare services, making it difficult to track specific funding and assess impact.
The analysis further identified growing demographic pressure as a major challenge, with the population of women of reproductive age projected to reach between 3.4 million and 3.7 million by 2025–2026. This, it said, is outpacing available funding and putting additional strain on health services.
In terms of spending priorities, Mr. Ismail observed that more funds are allocated to recurrent expenditure and procurement, rather than direct service delivery.
Other challenges identified include inadequate funding for family planning and reproductive health programmes, lack of disaggregated data, limited access to information, and heavy reliance on donor support.
To address these issues, Mr Ismail recommended improved and timely release of funds, population-based budgeting to tackle maternal mortality, and the ring-fencing of MNCH, RH, and FP funds to enhance accountability.
He also called for the reinstatement of previous budget formats to improve citizen participation and transparency, as well as increased domestic funding to reduce donor dependency.
Stakeholders urged citizens and advocacy groups to intensify calls for increased investment in maternal and reproductive health services to improve outcomes across the state.
KANO FOCUS reports that KanSLAM is a coalition of civil society organisations, media groups, and government agencies working collaboratively to improve maternal and child health outcomes in Kano State through advocacy, transparency, and community engagement.
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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