JOINT PRESS STATEMENT BY BFDW, ANEEJ & NISD ON THE OCCASION OF OFFICIAL KICK-OFF OF THE “ACT NAIJA” – CIVIL SOCIETY ACTION TO STRENGTHEN SOCIAL PROTECTION IN NIGERIA
27TH MAY 2025.
Gentlemen of the press,
Our Esteemed Consortium Leaders,
Distinguished Guests.
It is with great pleasure that I welcome you all on behalf of our consortium implementing the “Act Naija-” Civil Society Action to Strengthen Social Protection in Nigeria project to the formal Kick- off meeting. The Kick-Off Conference is a 3-day technical and strategic event being held from 27-29th of May, 2025 is aimed at aligning the project consortium, reviewing objectives and expected outcomes, and defining key milestones and deliverables.
The three-year project is being implemented by three organisations, namely: Bread for the World, Germany, Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice, ANEEJ and New Initiative for Social Development (NISD). The 1 million Euros project is being funded by the European Union under its Human Rights and Support to Civil Society in Nigeria programme.
Bread for the World is the Lead partner of the project and represents the consortium before the EU, and is responsible for the overall coordination. BfdW is the globally active development and relief agency of the Protestant churches in Germany. It has over 60 years of experience in project management, having funded and implemented projects and programmes in Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Africa, and Latin America-Caribbean for the past six decades. In 2023, BfdW supported 789 new projects in 87 countries worldwide worth around €209.1 million. BfdW has worked in Nigeria for 40 years, currently running cooperation with 15 partner organisations in 16 projects with a total funding volume of €6.61 million. Food security, peace building and conflict transformation, women and youth empowerment as well as strengthening of civil society are key programmatic areas in the Nigeria programme.
Beyond the financial cooperation, BfdW engages in personnel secondment, capacity building,
dialogue and joint advocacy. BfdW is also a member of the Global Coalition for Social Protection Floors (GCSPF)’s core team, and supports the network’s activities financially. Through BfdW’s engagement and other international networks, BfdW will be able to share outcomes and lessons learned from the Action with key civil society stakeholders at the global level.
The Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice, ANEEJ as co-partner has over 30 years’ experience working on diverse development issues in Nigeria. It is responsible for the implementation of the project at the national level, including activities in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, and in four states: Borno, Delta, Enugu, and Kogi. ANEEJ is a non-governmental non-profit organisation founded in 1995 acting in 36 States and the FCT in Nigeria and its vision is “Africa Without Poverty”. Since its inception, ANEEJ works to empower marginalised groups, including women, youths, and PWDs to increase their participation in democratic decision-making.
From 2020-2023, with support from BfdW and Department for International Development (DFID), ANEEJ implemented the “Enhancing Social Protection in Nigeria (ESPPIN)” project which covered five states of Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Ekiti, and Anambra. It contributed to the revised National Social Protection policy, enactment of the National Social Protection Agency Act (2023), the Ekiti State Social Protection Law, and Delta State Social Protection Bill, as well as contributed to the Edo and Anambra Social Protection policies. ANEEJ is currently implementing a three-year project (2023-2026) entitled “Tackling poverty through livelihood support, advocacy for social protection, and anti-corruption”, supported by BfdW.
The New Initiative for Social Development (NISD) on its part, is also a co-partner responsible for the implementation of the project in three states of Ekiti, Ondo, and Osun. NISD is a non-governmental non-profit organisation founded in 1998 and headquartered in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti state, operating in 26 LGAs in Nigeria. NISD focuses on advancing social and economic development in Nigeria. Its mission is to promote socio-economic progress through information-sharing, social mobilisation, training, research, advocacy, and capacity building.
NISD supports the effective implementation of development initiatives aimed at improving the
well-being of communities, especially children and vulnerable groups. NISD has implemented over 58 projects in several areas, including capacity building, governance, education, environmental sustainability, gender-based violence prevention, and economic empowerment. These projects have been supported by various international donors and organisations, including DFID, UNICEF, USAID, and the National Democratic Institute of Nigeria.
Social protection is one of the most essential mechanisms for reducing poverty and inequality and promoting social justice. In Nigeria, a country with vast economic potential yet staggering levels of poverty, the importance of a robust and inclusive social protection system cannot be overstated. Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country and the fourth largest economy on the continent, with a GDP of USD 252.74 billion.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics (2022), 44.7 million men and 43.7 million
women live on less than USD 1.90 a day, and 63% of the population is multidimensionally poor. The country’s low Human Development Index score of 0.548, ranking it 161st out of 193 countries UNDP (2024), underscores the urgent need for inclusive social policies that tackle these inequalities.
Several studies have shown that social protection in Nigeria is insufficiently developed, lacking comprehensive frameworks and systems that address the needs of vulnerable groups such as children, women, youths, elderly, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and persons with disabilities (PWDs).
Considering the above, “Act Naija!” aims to engage CSOs to advocate for the needs of all stakeholders, including women, youths, and PWDs, building their capacities to access and exercise their rights. The action’s initiatives are closely aligned to address national and international goals of the Agenda 2030. The awareness campaigns and educational sessions for the communities on social protection programmes contribute to eradicating poverty, as framed in SDG 1 (No poverty). The multi-stakeholder approach and collaborative work on a local and national level contribute to SDGs 16 (Peace, justice, and strong institutions) and 17 (Partnership for goals).
“Act Naija!”’s activities are guided by several international human rights conventions and declarations. The project contributes directly to the EU Multiannual Indicative Plan for 2021-2027 (MIP) in the field of CSOs, particularly to priority 2: “Building resilient, inclusive, and democratic societies”.
The overall objective and impact of the project is to contribute to reducing poverty in Nigeria with enhanced dialogue, collaboration, and engagement between civil society and government around inclusive social protection policies, monitoring, and accountability. “Act Naija!” aims to address diverse needs of Nigeria’s vulnerable populations through partnership between these key stakeholders and enhanced dialogue, which will facilitate a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities within social protection frameworks as well as leverage the expertise and resources of both civil society, private sector, and government entities. This collaborative approach is expected to lead to robust policy development and improved implementation and monitoring of social protection interventions. Ultimately, the action seeks to build a more equitable social protection environment where policies and programmes are better designed and delivered, thus contributing directly to the alleviation of poverty and improvement of living conditions for the marginalised populations in Nigeria.
“Act Naija!” will engage with a diverse set of target groups, with at least 2,120 people (60% women) directly involved in 63 communities of 21 local government areas (LGAs) in 7 Nigerian states (Enugu, Borno, Delta, Kogi, Ondo, Ekiti, and Osun) and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja. This strategy ensures that the initiative reaches a wide and varied audience, particularly those in underserved regions. The target groups include: 450 members of 150 local civil society organisations, 100 members from 30 community-based organisations (CBOs), 30 people from 5 groups of persons with disabilities, 1,000 members of 30 women groups, including 300 petty traders, 200 artisans, and 500 farmers, 300 youths from 50 organisations, 60 media representatives of 8 television stations, 5 radio stations, 5 blogs, and 10 major newspapers, 80 officials from 28 ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs), including local government area councils in 7 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Others include: 10 representatives of private-sector organisations involved in the delivery of social protection services, particularly cash transfer, 5 representatives from international organisations such as the World Bank, UN agencies, embassies, and the OGP National Secretariat, 40 action staff and other key institutional stakeholder representatives and 45 internally displaced persons with particular emphasis in Borno state, who require access to adequate housing and improved shelter conditions, livelihood support through income-generating activities. The action aligns with the EU’s support to strengthen CSOs as independent actors of governance and development in their own rights.
Already, the project has commissioned Impact Evaluators as its technical partner to undertake the development of the project baseline. The Impact Evaluators and the project staff have just returned from the field gathering relevant data to establish baseline date upon which performance would be measured. We are by this meeting set to hit the ground running hence our invitation to you to help us inform the Nigerian public of what to expect from the project in the next three years and to solicit the active participation of all stakeholders already identified.
We thank you for honouring our invitation and may God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Signed:
Casarella Chiara Francesca, Bread for the World (BfdW)
Leo Atakpu, Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ)
Steve Tsado, New Initiative for Sustainable Development (NISD)