By Danjuma Attah, Gombe
Budget and planning officers in Gombe State have been encouraged to prioritize Government’s investments on Children, adolescents and women who constitute over fifty percent of the population of the State.
The appeal was at the front-burner during a three-day capacity building for budget officers, accountants/cashiers and CREIU officers on the use of National Chart of Accounts in Governance Integrated Financial Management to Tag Social Investment.
According to Dr Yusuf Auta, Social Protection Specialist, Bauchi Field Office of UNICEF who expressed delight for supporting the Gombe State Government in the training, emphasized that social protection budget tagging will enable Government and other stakeholders track investments on children, adolescents and women as well as provide trajectories for their sustainable growth.
Dr Auta said, “Social protection has been proven to aid poor and vulnerable households to have access to healthcare, education, WASH, nutrition and other services to escape perpetuating poverty to their offspring”.
He expressed UNICEF’s continual readiness to avail itself in supporting the Gombe State Government to make the right decision and investment for the people of the State.
Earlier, while declaring the training open, the Permanent Secretary, Gombe State Ministry of Finance, who is the overseeing Permanent Secretary in the State Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Jalo Ibrahim Ali, said the training was aimed at strengthening public financial management systems.
The training was also intended to build the capacity of Government institutions especially in the areas of education, health, WASH and social protection for more effective service delivery.
He described the workshop as both timely and strategic, stressing “as we all know, the National Charter of Accounts is a critical tool for promoting uniformity, transparency, accountability, and efficiency in public financial management.
“Its effective use enables Government institutions to properly classify, record, track and report financial transactions in line with national standards and global best practices”, he maintained.
Jalo pointed out that “in Gombe State, improving the quality of budgeting, budget execution, accounting, and financial reporting remains central to our broader development objectives”, stressing that, “a sound and properly applied chart of accounts provide the foundation for credible planning, prudent resource allocation, and evidence-based decision making.
“It also strengthens our ability to monitor public expenditure and ensure that Government resources are used effectively to meet the needs of our citizens.
“As key officials in the management of public resources, your role is vital in ensuring that our financial systems remain robust, reliable, and responsive to the development priorities of Gombe State”, he added while thanking UNICEF for supporting the training.
It is expected that the participants at the workshop would have improved their capacity in preparing NCoA compliant budget using standard templates, improve resources for effective implementation of social policies and plans.
It was also expected that the workshop would have increased participants’ ability to avoid errors in budgeting, identify errors in the budget where it exists, and correct them as well as reduced headache for Ministry of Budget and Planning during budget consolidation, review and performance reporting.
End.
