Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani stated that 86% of those living in rural communities in the state live below the poverty line, while only 14%, primarily those living in metropolitan areas, live above the poverty line.
He termed the figure as frightening, emphasising that his administration will work closely with all stakeholders to alleviate poverty at the grassroots and reinvigorate rural economies.
Governor Sani raised the observation during a meeting with all the 23 local government chairmen and 255 ward councillors in the state, where he asked them to identify critical infrastructures and other economic interventions in their respective areas that will be executed by the state government in order to enhance the well-being of the rural population.
The meeting is geared towards getting direct report on all aspects of governance of the people at the grassroots, which is key in the preparation of the 2024 budget and implementation of government programmes across Kaduna State.
Lamenting on the high rate of poverty and insecurity in the rural communities, Governor Sani stressed the need for the state and local governments to come up with uniformed ideas and programmes that will benefit the people.
To this end, he announced that the state government will soon commence the rural transformation programme geared towards revitalising the economies of the rural areas who are the most vulnerable groups in the state.
The governor also highlighted the importance of local government chairmen holding regular security and town hall meetings at the grassroots level, which he noted are key towards transforming the rural economies thereby mitigating the rising cases of rural-urban migration.
The take away from this meeting is the need for local government chairmen to priotise their projects and programmes so that the people who are the most marginalized group in the society will begin to feel the impact of governance that has eluded them over the years.
Governor Sani and his deputy, Dr Hadiza Balarabe, as well as the speaker of the Kaduna State House of Assembly, Yusuf Liman, were present at the meeting, which also has all the 23 local government chairmen and 255 councillors in attendance.
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