The Exceptional Leadership and Integrity Promotion (ELIP), a non-governmental organization (NGO), has begun collecting citizens’ inputs to compile and submit for inclusion in the 2025 budget.
This was discussed by the executive director of the organization, Comrade Isah Mustapha, during an executive interview with Online Tribune in Dutse, the Jigawa state capital. The discussion took place during a town hall meeting with Civil Society Organizations and other stakeholders regarding the preparation of the 2025 budget.
Comrade Isah Mustapha explained that the organization has so far collected over 5,000 inputs from various communities across the state, reflecting their needs and interests to be incorporated into next year’s budget. “The collection process is ongoing.”
The executive director noted that “ELIP has embarked on extensive public mobilization and awareness campaigns across 287 political wards to educate citizens about their rights and their role in the state’s annual budget process.”
According to him, “The purpose is to ensure that community needs are prioritized in the state’s annual budget, leading to meaningful changes in resource allocation and programming.”
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He further stated, “Based on our annual appraisal of government policies and programs, we observed that if we continue with the current budget system, we will not achieve significant progress or meet our major objectives.”
“This year, we conducted town hall meetings across three senatorial zones, selecting one community-based organization from each of the 287 political wards and collecting inputs online. We received over 5,000 inputs from citizens,” he said.
Comrade Isah Mustapha emphasized, “I believe that no one in Jigawa State is satisfied with our current indices for capital development and other developmental aspects.”
He then called on the government to realign priorities in the budget to better reflect community needs, aspirations, and priorities that can effectively address local problems.
