CSCSD Membership of the Leadership of Civil Society Strategy Group

Between Monday 27 and Tuesday 28, January 2020, there was a Civil Society Retreat organized by the OSSAP-SDGs at Reiz Continental Hotel Abuja. Apart from paper presentations, there was an election that ushered in the new leadership of Civil Society Strategy Group on SDGs in Nigeria.

It should be recalled that the first Civil Society Strategy Group on SDGs was organized under the auspices of OSIWA in November 2015 supported by Action Campaign but there has been some lull in the activities of that pioneer body till civil society clamoured for a resuscitation of that group or out rightly having a new one. Thus OSSAP spearheaded this current one and did the inauguration on Tuesday 28 of January 2020. We do hope for its sustainability.

Meanwhile, Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development (www.cscsdev.org) the foremost and largest coalition working on SDGs in Nigeria participated actively in this programme including the election. I am happy to inform us that out of the 9-person committee to lead the SDGs process in this Decade of Action in collaboration with the government, four are members of the CSCSD. They include:

  • Dr Uzodinma Adirieje – Southeast Coordinator of CSCSD
  • Dr Margaret Mina Ogbanga – Southsouth Coordinator
  • Mr David Obinna Anyaele – member, Board of Trustee
  • Dr David Tola Winjobi – the National Coordinator

Incidentally, Dr Uzodinma Adirieje is the Chair of the body while Mrs Mina Ogbanga is the 2nd Deputy Chair while others are members. On behalf of the BoT, NSC and entire members of CSCSD, I congratulate all the four members and wish them a successful tenure of office. We believe they are going to use their wealth of experience in playing their advisory role to the Nigerian government and supporting the Global Decade of Action in accelerating the attainment of SDGs before 2030.

It should also go without saying that CSCSD has been appointed among the Core Working Group that would facilitate the Nigerian report on Voluntary National Review/HLPF. This position, I believe, does not preclude CSCSD from coming up with its own shadow report if deemed necessary, before July HLPF in New York.

Congrats to all members of CSCSD!!!


CAFSO-WRAG For Development Decries the Shrinking and Closed Spaces in Nigeria in Commemoration of the International Human Rights Day December 10, 2019

10th December 2019, Ibadan, Nigeria – CAFSO-WRAG for Development in partnership with the CSO Partnership for Development Effectiveness (CPDE) is organising a series of events tackling the shrinking civic space to commemorate the International Human Rights Day in Nigeria as part of multiple actions marking the CPDE Global Day of Action 2019.

The event titled, “the imperative of enabling environment for civil society shrinking space in Nigeria”, aimed to advocate for the reversal of shrinking spaces for civil society and the promotion of CSO enabling environment in Nigeria. Its specific objectives include:

  • To create awareness on the shrinking space for CSOs so as for government to reverse the trend.
  • To popularise CSO’s role as vital, independent development actors in their own right, and partners for development according to Belgrade Call Action and AAAA.
  • To bring to governments’ understanding that the realization of 2030 Agenda is in participatory and human rights approach involving the civil society and the media.
  • To present before government-specific asks bothering on the release of civil rights actors and retracting the social media bill before the House of Assembly.

Dr Tola Winjobi, the African Representative of CPDE who is also the Principal Coordinator of CAFSO-WRAG for Development explains that the action is important in view of incessant attacks and threats against the press and the civil society that may impede the realisation of the 2030 Agenda.

Dr Winjobi laments the obvious human rights abuses especially being perpetrated by the state. There is much impunity and violation of the rule of law as governments are adamant to court rulings against them. Many political prisoners like Sambo Dasuki, and Ibrahim El-Zakisaky and some journalists including Agba Jalingo, Omoyele Sowore publisher of Sahara Reporters, and Olawale Bakare are kept behind bars despite court injunction to release them on bail. A brazen disrespect for human rights and desecration of the temple of justice was the Gestapo-like re-arrest of Omoyele Sowore in the premises of the Federal High Court by the operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) on Friday, December 6, 2019. This arrant display of barbarism, brutality, gangsterism, hooliganism, and impunity by the SSS is a reflection of horrendous experience by civil society on a daily basis in Nigeria. Some of these anomalies go unnoticed and unreported some of the time which is why the impunity persists.

Press freedom is being curtailed gradually as some of the time, media houses are shut with impunity on frivolous allegation of publishing inciting materials and falsehood. Commonplace from 2014 to date are clampdowns on the Nigerian press, from the outright closure of media houses, to the seizure of large numbers of newspapers seen as anti-establishment and the confiscation of thousands of copies of several newspapers.

There have been obnoxious actions and policies including draconian bills targeted at civil society by Nigerian government in order to stifle the former. Some of these actions required mandatory registration with difficult requirements for CSO operations; regulatory restrictions and nebulous legislation including hate speech attracting death penalty; measures banning public demonstrations and processions except for the Nigerian state; poor and limited spaces available for CSO participation; and lack of technical and financial support for CSOs effective engagement and operations coupled with donor’s fatigue. On top of these draconian policies targeted at civil society is the financial bill requiring mandatory presentation of Tax Identification Number (TIN) by any individual operating a bank account in Nigeria as from January 2, 2020. Not mindful of government’s failure to provide social services for the people, the bill is no respecter of indigent women, poor widows, pauperized pensioners, pensionless senior citizens, petty business people, artisans, unemployed youth including fresh graduates who keep the stipends they have in banks for security reasons. One wonders where an unemployed person, for example, would get money to pay tax when the government has even failed to provide jobs and services for the people upon which taxes are imposed.

Dr Winjobi also cries out that not only Nigeria’s fledgling democracy is being threatened, but the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is also being jeopardised in Nigeria through the action of governments. Upholding human rights is core to development; and human rights-based approach (HRBA) is a fundamental principle for development effectiveness. It represents a paradigm shift crucial in achieving the
SDGs as it affirms the agency of the poor and marginalized people to chart their own destiny by empowering them as rights-holders instead of mere beneficiaries of charity. The maginalised are so pauperised to the extent that they could not discern their rights let alone stand for them. Thus they are being left behind. Real and transformative progress in achieving core SDGs – including eradicating poverty (SDG1), eliminating hunger (SDG2), addressing gender and all forms of discrimination (SDG5) reducing inequalities (SDG10), promoting decent work and sustainable livelihoods for all (SDG8) – will not be possible without a fully engaged civil society and population. The strengths of civil society are its diversity, its rootedness in communities and territories, its direct development experience, and its capacity for public engagement.

Tola charges the civic leaders to demand from governments a robust civic space for democratic participation, end the persecution of human rights defenders including political prisoners, promote access to governance and opportunities for development, and actualise commitment to inclusive participation in realising the SDGs.

Reflecting the Belgrade Call to Action 2019, Tola calls on governments:

  • To take concrete steps to protect and enable space for civil society, including enabling laws and regulations, democratic accountability based on human rights norms and human rights standards, and the full protection of civil society under attack – such as social leaders, human rights defenders and gender equality activists.
  • To repeal and halt all obnoxious laws, policies, and bills stifling operations of civil society and the press including social media bill that metes out death penalty on the violator reminiscent of the repressive Decree No 4 of 1984.
  • To implement and respect democratic country ownership of national development plans, imbibe open governance partnership, and implement transparency and accountability for inclusive SDG delivery.
  • To recognize the importance of the inter-connected themes in achieving Agenda 2030 — civil society voice, eradicating poverty, women’s empowerment, fighting inequality, decent work, climate action and environmental justice.
  • To uphold the rule of law, shun impunity and respect human rights by releasing unconditionally all the political prisoners and prisoners of conscience including the activists and journalists like Agba Jalingo, Omoyele Sowore, Olawale Bakare, kept behind bars despite court injunction to release them on bail.

CAFSO-WRAG for Development is a humanitarian, human rights, not for profit, and non-governmental organization established in 1994 in Ibadan, Nigeria. Its main task is to challenge the structures and institutions that perpetuate poverty, hunger and preventable diseases, and campaign for the fulfillment of all socio-economic and human rights for sustainable human and ecological development. For more information visit www.cafsowrag4development.org

CPDE is an open global platform that unites CSOs from around the world on the issue of effective development cooperation. It strives to make development more effective by reshaping the global aid architecture and empowering CSOs working on the ground. To know more, visit csopartnership.org.


Imperative of Enabling Environment for Civil Society Shrinking Space in Nigeria

A PRESS STATEMENT BY DR TOLA WINJOBI THE PRINCIPAL COORDINATOR, CAFSO-WRAG FOR DEVELOPMENT AND THE AFRICAN REPRESENTATIVE, CIVIL SOCIETY PARTNERSHIP FOR DEVELOPMENT EFFECTIVENESS AS PART OF THE ACTIVITIES OF CPDE GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION IN COMMEMORATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS DAY 10TH DECEMBER 2019 IN IBADAN NIGERIA, WEST AFRICA

CAFSO-WRAG for Development is a humanitarian, not for profit, and non-governmental organization established in 1994 in Ibadan, Nigeria. Its main task is to challenge the structures and institutions that perpetuate poverty, hunger and preventable diseases, and campaign for the fulfillment of all socio-economic and human rights for sustainable human and ecological development. It is deploying a series of activities including a press conference, roundtable discourse, social media action to tackle the issue of the shrinking civic space to commemorate International Human Rights Day in Nigeria.

The general objective is to advocate for the reversal of shrinking spaces for civil society and the promotion of CSO enabling environment in Nigeria. Specific Objectives include:

  • To create awareness on the shrinking space for CSOs so as for the government to reverse the trend.
  • To popularise CSO role as vital, independent development actors in their own right, and partners for development according to Belgrade Call Action and AAAA.
  • To bring to governments’ understanding that the realization of 2030 Agenda is in a participatory and human rights approach involving the civil society.
  • To present before government-specific asks bothering on the release of civil rights actors and retracting the social media bill before the House of Assembly.

According to the Belgrade Call to Action (2019), over six billion people are living in countries where there are serious constraints on civic space: the conditions are closed for civil society in 23 countries; civil society is highly repressed in 35 countries while civil society faces substantial legal and political obstacles in 53 countries. Civic actors across many sectors are being threatened and persecuted – including those supporting and representing rural communities, indigenous peoples, journalists, trade unions, women’s rights activists, LGBTQ activists, youth, people living with disabilities, and environmentalists. Harassment through arbitrary arrest, detention, targeted use of legal and regulatory measures, and restrictions on finances have become common experiences among civil society organisations (CSOs) in many countries. Deliberate discreditation as criminals, physical harm, and sexual harassment and abuse of women human rights defenders are commonplace. All these happen because the advocacy for peoples’ human rights and promotion of democratic participation are deemed by repressive states as dissent and, therefore, not to be tolerated.

In Nigeria, human rights abuses are common especially as being perpetrated by the state. There is much impunity and violation of the rule of law as governments are adamant to court rulings against them. Many political prisoners like Sambo Dasuki, and Ibrahim El-Zakisaky and some journalists including Agba Jalingo, are kept behind bars despite court injunction to release them on bail while Omoyele Sowore publisher of Sahara Reporters and Olawale Bakare were barely released Thursday, December 5, 2019, being detained since August 2019. Press freedom is being curtailed gradually as some of the time, media houses are shut with impunity on frivolous allegation of publishing inciting materials and falsehood. Commonplace from 2014 to date are clampdowns on the Nigerian press, from the outright closure of media houses to the seizure of large numbers of newspapers seen as anti-establishment and the confiscation of thousands of copies of several newspapers, most notably the Daily Trust, and Leadership, including the sealing of their distribution points in several major towns across the country by soldiers (Bayo Oladeji November 13, 2014).

There have been obnoxious actions and policies including bills targeted at civil society by the Nigerian government in order to stifle the former. Some of these actions required mandatory registration with difficult requirements for CSO operations; regulatory restrictions and nebulous legislation including hate speech attracting death penalty; measures banning public demonstrations and processions except for the Nigerian state; poor and limited spaces available for CSO participation; and lack of technical and financial support for CSOs effective engagement and operations coupled with donor’s fatigue. On top of these draconian policies targeted at civil society is the financial bill requiring mandatory presentation of Tax Identification Number (TIN) by any individual operating a bank account in Nigeria as from January 1, 2020. Not mindful of government’s failure to provide social services for the people, the bill is no respecter of indigent women, poor widows, pauperized pensioners, pensionless senior citizens, petty business people, artisans, unemployed youth including fresh graduates who keep the stipends they have in banks for security reasons. One wonders where an unemployed person, for example, would get money to pay tax when the government has even failed to provide jobs and services for the people upon which taxes are imposed.

Alas, not only Nigeria’s fledgling democracy is being threatened, but the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is also being jeopardized in Nigeria through the action of governments. Upholding human rights is core to development, and the human rights-based approach (HRBA) is a fundamental principle for development effectiveness. It represents a paradigm shift crucial in achieving the SDGs as it affirms the agency of the poor and marginalized people to chart their own destiny by empowering them as rights-holders instead of mere beneficiaries of charity. The marginalised are so pauperised to the extent that they could not discern their rights let alone to stand for them. Thus they are being left behind. Real and transformative progress in achieving core SDGs – including eradicating poverty (SDG1), eliminating hunger (SDG2), addressing gender and all forms of discrimination (SDG5) reducing inequalities (SDG10), promoting decent work and sustainable livelihoods for all (SDG8) – will not be possible without a fully engaged civil society and population. The strengths of civil society are its diversity, its rootedness in communities and territories, its direct development experience, and its capacity for public engagement.

Despite promises of action by many United Nations Member States to “reverse the trend of shrinking civic space wherever it is taking place,” (Nairobi Outcome Document, GPEDC) attacks on CSOs, social leaders and human rights defenders, and the deterioration of enabling the environment for CSOs (GPEDC 2019:8) continue unabated.

CSO representatives, development workers, activists, and campaigners from all over the world gathered in Belgrade, Serbia on 8-11 April 2019 for the Civil Society Summit as part of International Civil Society Week. Foremost at the Summit is the adoption of the Belgrade Call to Action, which asks UN Member States to act to reverse the closing and shrinking space for civil society, to stop the attacks on human rights defenders and the undermining of democratic participation, and to renew the prospects for an inclusive Agenda 2030 and the full realisation of the SDGs. CSO leaders from across the world amplified our messages before the UN High-Level Political Forum in July and the UN Special Session in September 2019.

As civic leaders we demand a robust civic space for democratic participation, ending the persecution of human rights defenders, promotion of access to governance and opportunities for development, and actualise commitment to inclusive participation in realising the SDGs.

We call on governments:

  • To take concrete steps to protect and enable space for civil society, including enabling laws and regulations, democratic accountability based on human rights norms and human rights standards, and the full protection of civil society under attack – such as social leaders, human rights defenders and gender equality activists.
  • To repeal and halt all obnoxious laws, policies, and bills stifling operations of civil society including social media bill that metes out death penalty on the violator.
  • To implement and respect democratic country ownership of national development plans and implements transparency and accountability for inclusive SDG delivery.
  • To recognize the importance of the interconnected themes in achieving Agenda 2030 — civil society voice, eradicating poverty, women’s empowerment, fighting inequality, decent work, climate action and environmental justice.
  • To uphold the rule of law, shun impunity and respect human rights by releasing unconditionally all the political prisoners and prisoners of conscience including the activists and journalists like Agba Jalingo, kept behind bars despite court injunction to release them on bail.

Today 10 December 2019 CPDE in partnership with her partners across the globe is launching a Global Day of Action against Shrinking Civic Spaces in commemoration of International Human Rights Day. CAFSO-WRAG for Development is participating actively in this initiative by deploying multiple strategies to tackle the menace. We have held a series of consultations with stakeholders. We organized campaign action on social media. We held a press conference while we also made press statements. This roundtable discourse aims at bringing to the front burner the dimensions of shrinking space for civil society in Nigeria coupled with human rights violation, impunity and lack of respect for the rule of law by the Nigerian authorities. We hope there would be useful suggestions to stem the tide while we are hopeful that government would reverse the trend of the repressive shrinking space by retracting the social media bill with the understanding that the realisation of the 2030 Agenda is hinged on freedom of speech, respect for human rights, and upholding the rule of law.

I wish you all successful deliberations.

Thank you. D. Tola Winjobi (PhD)
African Representative, CPDE


Press Release on the Celebration of the 3rd Anniversary of Agenda 2030 & SDGs

PRESS STATEMENT MADE BY DR TOLA WINJOBI THE NATIONAL COORDINATOR CIVIL SOCIETY COALITION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AT A ROUNDTABLE DISCOURSE ON THE NATIONAL WATER RESOURCES BILL BEFORE THE SENATE IN COMMEMORATION OF THE 3RD ANNIVERSARY OF SDGs (#ACT4SDGs) ORGANIZED BY CIVIL SOCIETY COALITION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN CONJUNCTION WITH NIGERIA INTEGRATED WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT COMMISSION AT ROYAL CHOICE HOTEL, CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT, ABUJA, NIGERIA ON TUESDAY 25TH SEPTEMBER 2018

Gentlemen of the press.

All other protocols duly observed.

Today’s occasion is significant for two reasons: the 3rd anniversary of the inception of Agenda 2030 and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals; and the push for the National Water Resources Bill before the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

As we all know, the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by the UN General Assembly on the 25th of September 2015 to replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which had started 15 years before. The SDGs officially came into effect on the 1st of January 2016 and is expected to drive development efforts of Members States for the next 15 years. The 17 goals and 169 targets of the SDGs represent a global consensus recognising both the achievements and inadequacies of the MDGs and emerging development challenges and aspirations. The SDGs presents a strong commitment by both developed and developing countries to end extreme poverty and hunger, reducing inequalities and promoting inclusive growth. The SDGs also aimed at preventing morbidity and mortality from diseases, providing access to healthcare and quality education, combating climate change as well as promoting global partnership for sustainable development.

Unlike the MDGs, the process leading to the adoption of the SDGs had been adjudged to be one of the most participatory and consultative in the history of the United Nations. From the global, national and thematic consultations of citizens’ surveys and inter-governmental negotiations, the SDGs processes afforded stakeholders from State Parties to Civil Society Organisations, private sector, the academia amongst others, the opportunity to contribute to the shaping of the new global development agenda.

Today marks the 3rd anniversary of the inception of Agenda 2030 and the SDGs. This occasion is being celebrated simultaneously across the globe by governments, civil society organizations, professional associations, development partners, women’s groups, persons with disability, youth and the minority groups. Tagged the Global Day to #Act4SDGs, it mobilises multi-stakeholders, connects and amplifies the impact of local and global actions for the SDGs, and encourages a global movement for the achievement of SDGs. Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development (CSCSD) is not lagging behind as it has instructed its members across the six geo-political zones of Nigeria to #Act4SDGs in their various localities. Its own adopted theme is:

“Towards safe, adequate and sustainable water supply services and sanitation for Nigerian people”.

How have we faired in the last three years in the implementation of SDGs in Nigeria? It is sad to note that according to The World Poverty Clock, Nigeria with 86.9 million poor people, has overtaken India as the world’s poverty headquarters. This figure translates to nearly 50 per cent of Nigerians suffering from poverty. According to Action Against Hunger, Nigeria, especially northern Nigeria, suffers the world’s third highest level of chronic under nutrition among children, and this is exacerbated by “lack of access to safe water and sanitation, rising food insecurity, the disruption of basic services due to conflict, and poor knowledge of healthy feeding practices for infants and young children”. A new national survey has shown that about 130 million Nigerians live without access to improved sanitation even as it revealed that Nigeria loses N455 billion (U$1.3 billion) annually due to poor sanitation (Vanguard on line: Sept. 22, 2018). Youth unemployment rate in Nigeria averaged 21.73 percent from 2014 until 2017, reaching an all time high of 33.10 percent in the third quarter of 2017 and a record low of 11.70 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014. Going by the figure released in the last quarter of 2016 by the National Bureau of Statistics that 28.56 million youths were unemployed, one can confidently say that the population of unemployed young people has increased to over 30 million in this third quarter of 2018. This is lamentable! It is unacceptable! How can Nigeria achieve SDGs by 2030 in the face of all these damning figures?

Achieving the SDGs is dependent on the political will of our leadership. Governments at all levels only need to walk the talk and stop paying lip service to development issues. Although all the 17 goals are important, they however do not have equal weight. Prioritising the goals is necessary because it is obvious government may feign not having enough the resources to bring about the realisation of the 17 goals by 2030. Whereas Nigeria has the resources, it has all it takes to attain SDGs but self-centeredness coupled with endemic corruption has been the bane of our development over time.

One of the Goals that need to be prioritised is Goal 6 which mandates the governments to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. The second target of that goal encourages government to provide access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all, and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations. This goal is associated with the realisation of some other goals. For example, sound health can be achieved in our community with availability of quality and quantity water supply and good sanitation thus partly achieving Goal 3 of the SDGs.

This Goal 6 is linked to the National Water Resources Bill which the House of Representatives has passed and now before the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It is an Act to provide for the equitable, beneficial, efficient and sustainable development, management, use and conservation of Nigeria’s surface and groundwater resources; to establish institutional arrangements for Nigeria’s water resources sector, to regulate the water resources sector and other matters connected thereto.

Though the bill may have its pitfalls, the import and benefits of the bill are what one needs to consider. For example, some people opine that though the bill provides for borehole drilling by River Basin Development Authorities (RBDA) in communities of the States, boreholes would be drilled without the engagement with the communities, LGAs and State level agencies. Meaning that there might not be enough consultations before action is taken, and this is against the spirit of inclusiveness that Agenda 2030 preaches. The Bill should be made to compel RBDAs and other federal agencies providing water and sanitation services within their areas of jurisdiction to carry the States and LGAs along in their plan so that the state apparatus can build community management structure into the plan and include such communities in their investment plans as captured in the monitoring system of the state. The Bill is also criticised as largely a water resources bill while the issue of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) seems to be relegated. If there can’t be a separate bill to address WASH, WASH should be factored into this bill. There also seems not to be enough awareness even at the state level as this is seen as a federal bill. There should be enough education and awareness especially on the roles and responsibilities of the federal level agencies including RBDA against the role of the communities, LGAs and State level agencies so as to prevent conflict of interests.

In fairness, the benefits of the bill outweigh its demerits. The importance on water in national development has been summarized in the statement that emanated from the UN Budapest Water Submit of 11th Oct, 2013 viz; “A sustainable World is a Water-Secured World”. Consequently, for a nation, a sustainable nation is a water–secured nation. The bill when passed is going to be a compendium of all water related bodies which are already in existence as the National In-Land Water-ways and National Water Resources Institute, Kaduna. In implementing the principles under subsections (1) and (2) of the bill, the institutions established under this Act shall promote integrated water resources management (IWRM) and coordinate the management of:

  • economic development, social welfare and environmental sustainability;
  • land and water resources;
  • surface water and groundwater resources;
  • the river basins and adjacent marine and coastal environment; and
  • upstream and downstream interests.

Other benefits of the National Water Resources Bill include:

  1. Integrated approach for better water resources management for all users to improve their livelihood in the state in terms of agric, domestic and industrial supply and sanitation for good health.
  2. Identification and harmonization of stakeholders’ responsibilities with a view to increasing coverage and water resources quality control.
  3. Improvement on the water resources development through effective control of over extraction.
  4. Addressing conflicting issues amongst stakeholders in the water sector usage and effective regulation of the sector surface and underground water.
  5. Improvement in the revenue drive of the water sector.
  6. Opportunity for the state governments to key into and take advantages of funding from Federal Government of Nigeria through water investment.
  7. The state governments would be able to meet the multilateral Institutions and International Development Partners’ conditionalities and prerequisite for financial support.
  8. Tendency to meet some of the targets of the SDG 6 on water and sanitation before 2030.

The Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development is ready to partner with Federal Ministry of Water Resources, NIWRMC and other relevant stakeholders to ensure the bill is understood by the senate and passed within this 8th Assembly. We implore the Senate to understand the importance of the bill in contributing towards the socio-economic development and ecosystem sustainability of our country. The Senate, taking a cue from the House of Representatives that has passed it into law with due consultations with stakeholders, should know that passing the bill into law is for the benefit of all Nigerians towards effective, efficient and sustainable water resources management and contributing to the realization of the SDGs. We are ready to further create more awareness on the bill and by sharing the bill to other stakeholders to know the content and understand its importance to water management so as to reduce the risks of environmental hazards as we are witnessing these days.

I wish us all happy celebrations of the 3rd anniversary of Agenda 2030. I wish us fruitful deliberations in pushing for the successful passage into law the national water resources bill, and in pressuring governments “Towards safe, adequate and sustainable water supply services and sanitation for Nigerian people”.

Thank you.

David Tola Winjobi (PhD)
National Coordinator, CSCSD
08030618326, tola.winjobi@cscsdev.org

ABOUT CSCSD
Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development (CSCSD) formerly known as Campaign2015+ International established in 2010 is a coalition of over 1000 registered civil society and nongovernmental organizations and individuals committed to citizens’ empowerment, human rights protection, development and peace in Nigeria. It is the only registered national coalition of organizations purposely created to be working on the monitoring of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.

CSCSD collaborates with other like-minded CSOs around the world to promote public debates and discussions on economic and social issues including human rights. A priority in the agenda of CSCSD, among other actions, is campaigning for pro-poor global and national policies that can accelerate broad-based economic growth, poverty reduction and public accountability, as well as the call for immediate action to reduce the debt burden of poor countries and institute fair trade policies and practices, and ODA development effectiveness among the OECD and other developed countries around the globe. CSCSD envisions a society whose centre-stage is justice, peace, fulfillment of human rights and development in all ramifications. CSCSD, in partnership with other civil society, the poor and the marginalized, the donors, the development partners, and international community, aims at pressuring governments and other stakeholders to account to SDGs and give the lives of people a meaning through upholding justice, human rights and development.

For more information about CSCSD, visit www.cscsdev.org. Wanting to join the largest SDG coalition in Nigeria? Please fill this form by clicking: https://goo.gl/forms/9YRQ0KeE0bwVWSzq1

Strategy Paper on CSCSD


CSCSD Meeting with DAWN Commission

DAWN Commission, Friday September 21 2018, held a strategic meeting with the Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development.

The meeting focused majorly on how the two organisations could build a mutually rewarding relationship as well as foster partnership along the Commission’s activities on the Ease-of-Doing Business in the Western Region of Nigeria.

The discussion centered around DAWN’s intervention area with DFID-PERL/ARC on “Improving the Business Environment” for better service delivery, with the recently inaugurated Regional Ease-of-Doing Business committee, comprising of states and non-states actors, set up to specifically to address the bottlenecks business owners experience in the Region.

Highlights:

(1) Membership on the Southwest Regional Ease-of-Doing Business Committee (SWREC)

(2) Partnership in organising Southwest SDG Summit

(3) Partnership in other development areas, among other things

The meeting had in attendance the National, Regional and States coordinators/representatives of CSCSD including Dr Tola Winjobi. It was facilitated by Economic Competitiveness/Investment Pillar (EoDB team) of DAWN Commission.

CSCSD Appointed as African Regional Focal Organization


CSCSD Appointed as African Regional Focal Organization

Dear Colleagues,

This is to formally inform you that Transparency Accountability and Participatory (TAP) Network USA has appointed your coalition Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development (CSCSD) as Regional Focal Point for the TAP Network in Africa. This is a co-regional focal position to be shared between CSCSD Nigeria and Saferworld Somalia represented respectively by Tola Winjobi and Abdijalil in West Africa and East Africa subregions. This was communicated through an email sent by Mr John Romano (the Coordinator) on Tuesday July 2 2018 from TAP Global Secretariat in New York. Continue Reading



ATTEND A TWO-DAY WORKSHOP ON PROPOSAL WRITING

ATTEND A TWO-DAY WORKSHOP ON PROPOSAL WRITING:

CAFSO-WRAG FOR DEVELOPMENT (with support from Maria Ebun Foundation)

PRESENTS A TWO-DAY TRAINING WORKSHOP ON FUNDRAISING AND PROPOSAL WRITING

With a Special session on NGO Management and Organizational profiling

TARGET: Specially designed for CSOs, NGOs, CBOs, not-for-profit, small scale social entrepreneur, startups etc. Continue Reading