Workshop Resolves to Strengthen Demographic Data Management in Yobe
By Baba Dan’Iya
Participants at a five-day capacity-building workshop on Human Capital Development and Demographic Dividend (HCD–DD) have resolved to strengthen demographic data management and utilisation in Yobe.
The workshop, supported by the Lafiya UK Project, held from Sept. 14 to Sept. 18, brought together representatives of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), development partners and data institutions under the chairmanship of the Deputy Governor.
In a communiqué issued at the end of the workshop, participants identified several challenges affecting effective data management in the state. These included low technical capacity of data managers across many MDAs, discrepancies in data sources, and projected population figures that did not reflect current realities.
Other challenges cited were the absence of dedicated Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) units in some MDAs, lack of a comprehensive state M&E policy, and reluctance by some officers to release data when needed due to supervisory bottlenecks.
The workshop resolved to seek the Deputy Governor’s support for the formation of an effective M&E team comprising competent members, while ensuring that all data generated is updated, realistic, and aligned with national targets.
It also recommended that MDAs shift focus from planning to effective implementation, revive results-oriented M&E units, and centralise data within the State Bureau of Statistics for consistency, harmonisation and comparability.
Furthermore, participants agreed that policies derived from data and stakeholder consensus should be operationalised, while valuable suggestions from the workshop be considered in state development plans, including provisions reflecting the predominantly Muslim context of Yobe.
They also resolved that the HCD–DD strategic plan remain open for periodic review to reflect emerging realities, and called for the establishment of an integrated data system to promote evidence-based decision-making.
Participants reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen collaboration between state and national data institutions, enhance institutional capacity, and embed data-driven approaches within the HCD–DD framework to accelerate progress toward realising the demographic dividend.
