Sharing and Learning among Secretaries to Local Governments in Lagos State

March 06, 2020 12:46:10 PM Published by: PERL

 

The appetite for peer learning and sharing of professional better-fit approaches to governance continues to be evident in Lagos State, Southwest Nigeria. Among Secretaries to Local Government Areas (SLGAs) and Local Council Development Areas (SLCDAs), this appetite is further nurtured by the Office of Secretary to Lagos State Government (SLSG). As part of its mandate to coordinate the functions of SLGAs and SLCDAs, the SLSG convokes quarterly sessions with the SLGAs and SLCDAs to update/improve their professional practices and enhance good governance at the local level.

The first forum for Year 2020 was convened on the 5th of March. The SLSG used the opportunity to form a Community of Practice among the SLGAs and SLCDAs. Addressing the gathering, the Secretary to Lagos State Government, Mrs Folashade Jaji, hoped that the leadership of LGAs and LCDAs would draw lessons, share and implement them, in a way that adds value to the realization of a greater Lagos, in support of the vision of His Excellency the Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu. She acknowledged that a greater Lagos is only possible when greater communities are in place, through greater LGAs and LCDAs.

The idea of a Community of Practice (CoP) for SLGAs and SLCDAs was drawn from the CoP for Secretaries to State Governments, supported by the Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL) Programme, of the UK Department for International Development (DFID). Following this initiative, Lagos State has stepped down the learning process to the Local Government level to enhance cohesion, encourage better working relationships and promote a greater Lagos within local communities.

The SLGAs and SLCDAs acknowledged that the willingness to participate in a CoP had existed and that the Secretaries needed a slight push in the right direction. Some of the identified values that would sustain the CoP include peer support, open and solution-oriented discussions and professional trainings on relevant skills.

Across Southwest Nigeria, PERL has supported the formation of diverse communities of practice including for Heads of Service, Heads of Reform Coordinating Agencies, Commissioners for Economic Planning and Budget, Women in Governance, and Southwest Legislative Reform Implementation Committee, among others.