Governors pledge commitment to early childhood development

— Seek stronger state-level action on human capital

By Henry Umoru

ABUJA — The 36 state governors, under the aegis of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, NGF, have reaffirmed their commitment to making Early Childhood Development, ECD, a strategic priority in their respective states.

The commitment was disclosed by the NGF Director-General, Dr Abdulateef Shittu, at the North-West Zonal Consultative Workshop on Early Childhood Development, organised in collaboration with the World Bank, Human Capital Development, HCD, and the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning.

Shittu said the governors had, at their meeting on June 17, 2026, reaffirmed that investment in ECD was fundamental to improving health, nutrition, school readiness, learning outcomes, future productivity and overall human capital development.

Represented at the workshop by the NGF Director of Media and Strategic Communications, Mallam Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, the director-general said Nigeria must begin to view ECD as a development and economic imperative rather than an intervention limited to a particular sector.

He said, “Investing in Early Childhood Development is therefore not only an investment in children; it is an investment in Nigeria’s human capital and long-term economic development.”

According to Shittu, the period from pregnancy to the first five years of life represents a critical window for a child’s development, during which the foundations for health, learning, cognitive development and future productivity are established.

He stressed that the effectiveness of national ECD policies would ultimately depend on their implementation at the state and local government levels.

“While national policies and frameworks provide important direction, their impact will ultimately depend on how effectively they are translated into action at the state and local government levels.

“This places us, the state actors, at the centre of Nigeria’s ECD agenda,” he said.

Shittu also stressed the need for a coordinated, multisectoral approach, noting that no single ministry, department or agency could provide all the interventions required for children to thrive.

“Early Childhood Development is inherently multisectoral. No single MDA can deliver the range of interventions that a child requires to thrive. All sectors must work together towards shared outcomes for children,” he said.

He said the consultative workshop was expected to help states move from broad policy commitments to practical and implementable plans that reflected their specific needs, realities and institutional capacities.

“This workshop provides an opportunity for states to develop state-specific, practical and implementable plans that reflect their peculiar needs, realities and existing systems,” he said.

The NGF boss, however, cautioned that developing plans should not be regarded as an end in itself, stressing the need for effective implementation, financing, coordination and accountability.

“Our expectation is that this process goes beyond the development of plans. The plans developed here should provide a clear pathway for implementation, coordination, financing and accountability and, importantly, should be integrated into existing state planning and budgeting processes,” he said.

Shittu said the NGF Secretariat would continue to use its convening and peer-learning roles to support states in strengthening their ECD systems and translating national priorities into sustainable subnational action.

He added that the forum would continue to champion ECD as a key development priority, facilitate knowledge sharing among states and strengthen collaboration with development partners.

The director-general urged participants to use the workshop to develop ambitious but realistic plans capable of delivering measurable improvements in outcomes for young children.

“I encourage everyone to participate actively, share experiences and use this opportunity to develop plans that are both ambitious and realistic,” he said.

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