Governors to Declare Nutrition Emergency, Establish National Intervention Fund

Governors of Nigeria’s 36 states have committed to declaring a nationwide nutrition emergency and establishing a National Nutrition Intervention Fund to accelerate efforts to combat malnutrition across the country.

The commitment is aimed at strengthening the implementation of the Nutrition 774 Initiative, which seeks to improve nutrition outcomes across all 774 local government areas through coordinated action, increased domestic financing and grassroots accountability.

Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, announced the commitment on Friday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, while reading the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) Addis Ababa Commitment on Nutrition at the Nigeria Country Session.

The commitment followed a three-day Nigeria-Ethiopia Nutrition Leadership Exchange, during which a Nigerian delegation led by Vice President Kashim Shettima studied Ethiopia’s experience in addressing malnutrition, particularly through its Seqota Declaration.

Speaking at the session themed “From Lessons to Commitment: Accelerating Implementation of the Nutrition 774 Initiative,” Lawal said the exchange reinforced the need for sustained political leadership, effective coordination across sectors, predictable financing and the use of data to improve nutrition outcomes.

He noted that Nigeria’s Nutrition 774 Initiative already reflected several principles adopted by Ethiopia, adding that lessons from the exchange would help strengthen implementation and deliver measurable results.

According to him, key lessons included unified planning and budgeting, stronger coordination among sectors, bottom-up planning, predictable funding and the use of performance scorecards to track progress.

The governors also identified matching financing between the Federal Government and state governments as a critical mechanism for aligning priorities, encouraging investment and promoting shared accountability.

Lawal recalled that the three tiers of government signed the Nutrition Compact on February 20, 2025, in the presence of Vice President Shettima, to establish a common framework for tackling malnutrition.

The compact was signed by the NGF chairman on behalf of the 36 states, the President of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) on behalf of the 774 local governments, and the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning on behalf of the Federal Government.

Under the latest commitment, the governors resolved to declare nutrition a national emergency, establish the National Nutrition Intervention Fund and institutionalise the principle of “One Goal, One Plan and One Budget” for nutrition.

The proposed fund is expected to encourage greater state investment, reward effective implementation and support measurable improvements in nutrition outcomes.

The governors also pledged to ensure that nutrition priorities identified at community and ward levels are incorporated into local government, state and national development plans.

They further committed to extending the National Nutrition Scorecard beyond the state level to include local government and ward-level indicators, while strengthening the use of data for decision-making, resource allocation and performance monitoring.

Meanwhile, the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Muyi Aina, disclosed that the Federal Government would begin targeted nutrition interventions in two states with high stunting rates before expanding the programme to other parts of the country.

Aina, who spoke on behalf of federal agencies, said the government would adopt a focused approach by selecting the two states based on their stunting burden, establishing clear objectives and developing multisectoral interventions tailored to their needs.

He explained that relevant ministers and federal agencies would work with state governors, communities and development partners to identify priorities, assign responsibilities and develop a costed implementation plan supported by joint financing arrangements.

“We will track very rigorously progress in the execution of the plan,” Aina said.

He proposed review meetings at three, six and nine months with Vice President Shettima, who chairs the National Council on Nutrition, to assess implementation, address gaps and guide the expansion of successful interventions.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, also emphasised the need to translate political commitments into practical actions and measurable results.

Pate identified focused sectoral interventions, clear implementation roadmaps, performance matrices and accountability as essential to accelerating Nigeria’s response to malnutrition.

He said the Federal Government would work with state governments to implement the commitments, with progress reported to the Vice President through the National Council on Nutrition.

Ethiopia’s Minister of Health, Dr Mekdes Daba, commended Nigeria for its commitment to improving nutrition delivery and described the exchange as an opportunity for African countries to learn from one another.

Daba stressed that political commitments must translate into tangible improvements in citizens’ lives, noting that implementation, continuous assessment and feedback were essential for achieving lasting results.

She assured Nigeria of Ethiopia’s readiness to provide technical support as the country implements and expands the Nutrition 774 Initiative.

The minister also expressed optimism that the exchange would strengthen long-term cooperation between both countries in tackling malnutrition and improving public health outcomes.