Deputy Governor of Enugu State declaring the meeting open		Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Agba presenting his keynote address

The Community of Practice (CoP) for Heads of Budget and Planning Agencies – established by the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning (MFBNP) with support from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Partnership to Engage Reform and Learn (PERL) programme, continues to influence improvements in the systems and structures for governance in Nigeria.  

The CoP provides the opportunity for Planning and Budget Commissioners, who are responsible for policy, planning and budgeting across Nigeria’s 36 states, to share lessons to augment fiscal discipline. The 13th meeting of the CoP was held in Enugu State on 1 – 2 February 2021 with the theme: “Beyond oil – exploring potential in local content initiatives through enhanced commercialization of indigenous technologies for wealth creation”. The session, declared open by the Deputy Governor of Enugu State, was structured to reflect on the strategic initiatives implemented by states to improve economic resilience in the face of reduced revenues from oil, occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic and global transition from the use of fossil fuels to clean energy. 

In his keynote address, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, who joined the meeting virtually, emphasized the significance of the issue, when he reminded his colleagues that Nigeria could be in dire fiscal straits, if government revenues continue to depend on proceeds from the sale of fossil fuels. This is pertinent as markets for Nigeria’s crude oil exports are beginning to adopt alternative sources of energy. He encouraged the Commissioners to leverage the opportunity provided by the CoP, to network, share and learn. He further advised them to advance technologically driven initiatives that promote economic diversification and wealth creation. 

Cross-section of participants at the 13th Community of Practice for Heads of Budget and Planning		Cross-section of participants at the 13th Community of Practice for Heads of Budget and Planning
Reform Facilitator for PERL’s Federal Team presenting the Reform Manager’s remarks		The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Budget and National Planning presenting her goodwill remarks

While outlining the structure and framework for the meeting, the Acting Director, Special Duties of the MBNP, Dr Mrs. Gloria Ahmed, highlighted the key achievements of the CoP. She stated that interactions at the CoP had improved planning and budgeting systems in some states; citing examples such as Kwara, Osun and Kogi States, adopting medium term planning based on the MTEF approach. She also noted that states were organising bilateral learning exchanges to deepen knowledge from the experience of peers. 

The Permanent Secretary of the MFBNP during her goodwill remarks, thanked PERL for its partnership in establishing and sustaining the CoP. Whilst commending the leadership of the Ministry for its commitment to the effectiveness and sustainability of the CoP, the Reform Manager for PERL’s Federal Team, expressed the Programme’s delight that “what started out as an experiment was now taking roots and branching out; producing results to the point that states are hosting the community and the Federal Ministry committing funds to manage the practice”.

To promote coordination and cross-fertilization of ideas between the national and sub-national levels, PERL facilitated the participation of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), a Federal Agency with a mandate for the promotion, development and diversification of exports. The Agency presented the topic: Tackling Extreme Poverty in Nigeria: A Sustainable Approach, highlighting its key initiatives as well as opportunities for accessing export markets.

This was followed by an experience sharing session, which commenced with a lead presentation from Enugu State on its agricultural and revenue administration reforms to create jobs and improve public finances. 

The second day of the CoP Programme featured experience sharing by Commissioners from other states as well as site visits to innovative projects in the state. Some of the initiatives as reported by states include: the ‘One Product One LGA’ by Kaduna State and the innovative use of Social Investment Programmes by Ondo and Kwara States. Sokoto State is set to host the next CoP meeting themed: ‘Tackling Youth Unemployment’ and ‘Post COVID Recovery’.