By Izunna Okafor, Awka
The Anambra State Government under Governor Chukwuma Soludo has been described as a government that walks the talk by keeping to its promises to the people and being committed to fulfilling its own part in every agreement with development partners.
The State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Mrs. Chiamaka Nnake, stated this at the just-concluded Partnership Coordination and Review Meeting organized by the Ministry for the purpose of evaluating the progress of various projects and programs in the State being facilitated through partnerships or joint efforts of the State government and other development partners, with the aim of identifying the challenges (if any), the lessons learned, and the way forward.
Held on Tuesday and Wednesday in Awka, the state capital, the event had in attendance, representatives of the various concerned state and non-state actors, including Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs); non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the media, all with the aim of assessing the effectiveness of ongoing joint interventions across the state.
Addressing the participants, Commissioner Nnake, who commended the efforts of the actors in the partnership, also reaffirmed the unwavering commitment of the state government to meeting its counterpart funding obligations in these collaborative projects with these development partners, as is evidenced in its timely fulfillment of its own part overtime.
She also emphasized the need for such periodic evaluation of progresses and thorough coordination between the state government and its development partners, adding that proper understanding of the roles and contributions of all partners would help streamline processes, ensuring that projects and programs align with the standard and priorities of the government and the people for whom they intended.
According to her, this approach would also help minimize duplication of projects and development efforts, while also allowing for the optimal use and channelling of the limited available resources to impactful projects that address the critical needs of the people.
Her words: “There is a necessity to harmonize our efforts with those of our partners to ensure that all interventions go through the proper channels. This will not only reduce project redundancy but also enable us to prioritize initiatives that deliver maximum impact with the available funds.”
In their separate remarks at the event, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mrs. Chinyere Nwabachili; and the Head of the Partnership Coordination Department in the Ministry, Obiananma Orji, re-echoed that such reviews are critical for identifying bottlenecks in project execution and finding solutions that would improve future collaborations.
According to them, bringing everyone together to share experiences would help in understanding any challenges that may have arisen during the course of project implementation and also help to identify new opportunities that can make the collaborations and interventions more effective.
Also speaking, one of the partners present and Zonal Monitoring and Evaluation Officer for ATASP-1 (Agricultural Transformation Agenda Support Program), elaborated on the role of his organization in enhancing agricultural productivity and food security in the state, further outlining how their interventions have focused on improving infrastructure, developing commodity value chains, and managing programs that boost income generation and rural livelihoods.
Contributing, participants from other sectors, including the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Mrs. Ifeyinwa Uzoka, and her counterpart from the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Mrs. Chinwe Achukwu, among others also shared their contributions towards the state’s development and reiterated the importance of synergy between various MDAs and development partners in achieving sustainable growth in Anambra State.
