Sanwo-Olu: Human capital development will break the cycle of poverty

Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos, says human capital development is the most responsive initiative that can break the cycle of poverty.

He said this at a regional conference the Lagos government organised alongside the governments of the six south-western states.

The states committed to making the right investments in people – ensuring that they accumulate the knowledge and skills they will need to compete in a new world.

According to the governor, the high level engagement marked the beginning of inter-state and cross-sectorial collaborations among the states to bridge the gap between evidence and action and improve outcomes across the three thematic area of education, health and nutrition and labour force.

Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, said the collective leadership of the region will be critical to making sure that the country has the opportunity to thrive and that everyone, irrespective of city, has a chance to achieve their highest aspirations.

He stated that the region has a unique and competitive advantage with her distinctive sense of citizen’s identity who are innovative, hard-working, self-reliant and more willing to contribute to economic growth, affirming that government must enliven the HCD ambition with innovative policies that outline short-term and long-term targets.

While alluding to the projection that Africa will soon be home to more than 50% of the world’s youth and the region holds a dominant portion of this demography, the governor added that there is a sense of urgency for policy makers to create opportunities and prepare the youth for the emerging and complex future.

“In the light of the recently released Multi-dimensional Poverty in Nigeria (2022) Report, government across the 6 States to turn our lens towards creating diverse opportunities for human development by leveraging evidence-based advocacy to mobilize ourselves and take actions to drive the accountability needed to deliver change at scale across communities and improve developmental outcomes for our citizens,” he said.

“Interestingly, the brand of governance that supports the delivery of some objective of HCD has continually been projected in our respective states. The right, the means, the space, the opportunity and the support to participate and influence decisions and engage in actions and activities that will contribute to building a better society lies within our approach to create value for human ingenuity”.

In her welcome address, the HCD Focal Person in Lagos who is also the special adviser to the governor on SDGs and Investment, Solape Hammond, said a key priority of the administration in the last three years has been the alignment of policies and initiatives backed by tangible budget spending on critical human development areas.

Highlighting the dtate’s priorities in driving human development outcomes in the three thematic areas – Health and Nutrition, Education and Labour Force, Solape said the aspirations of a government do not lie in its vision but rather in its budget.

“Lagos State has remained a frontrunner in the adoption of innovations, concepts and approaches that seek to improve the lot of our populace and guarantee a better future for coming generations. Notwithstanding these efforts, we are always keen to do more – and we know that much more is needed”, she said.