Gov Radda’s Development Trajectory Unmatched – Executive Secretary, KSDMB

Briefingly tell us about your journey to becoming the Executive Secretary of the  board?

Regarding my journey to this position, I would say it was largely the decision of the state government. As of December 11th, 2024, I was still the Project Coordinator for the AGILE Project, and that was the only role I was playing. But on December 12th, His Excellency appointed me to serve as the Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Development Management Board.

I believe some of the reasons behind that appointment include my experience in the development space, and how with the support of His Excellency, Malam Dikko Umar Radda, we successfully managed the implementation of the AGILE project and supported several other development initiatives across the state.

How has the journey been so far since you assumed office?

By December 12th, I will be exactly one year in office, so it is almost eleven months and a few weeks now. The journey has been smooth, and we’ve recorded impressive progress.

One of the core mandates of our board is to coordinate all development partner activities in the state, and we have been doing that gradually but effectively.

One of the first things I did when I assumed office was to study the handover notes from my predecessor, Hajiya Bilkisu. I found several innovations and well-designed roll-out plans in that document. So, I simply continued from where she stopped, because the ultimate goal is to ensure that Katsina State is properly positioned in terms of development coordination, policy alignment, and service delivery.

We began by identifying all development partners local, state, national, and international and then working to ensure that they all operate in harmony under one coordinated structure for the state.

We held meetings with International Non-Governmental Organisations (INGOs) registered in the state. Those meetings gave us a clear picture of the kinds of support the state receives whether funding, technical assistance, or capacity building. That helped us understand the state’s development capacity from a holistic perspective.

We also continued registering new development organisations entering Katsina, facilitating quick signing of MOUs, encouraging them to hire Katsina citizens where possible, and providing them with an enabling environment to operate. Whenever the MOU required counterpart funding from the state, the government immediately provided it. And where structures such as steering committees or technical committees were required, we established them.

So I can confidently say that in terms of development partner coordination, Katsina State has achieved a lot and continues to do more.

Can you highlight some of the key milestones and achievements recorded under your leadership?

Certainly. One of our major achievements is the signing of several significant Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs).

We signed an important MOU with the Centre for Climate Research in Agriculture, giving the state a robust data system for climate-smart agriculture. With this, for any piece of land in Katsina State, the data now shows the exact type of crop suitable for that soil, the expected yield, and the harvest potential.

We also signed MOUs with various health-related organisations, including medical outreach teams from Belgium who provide free cancer screening and treatment particularly cervical and breast cancer.

Additionally, we signed MOUs that support ease of doing business in the state. Through these agreements, organisations can now easily understand the processes of obtaining land, establishing an office, signing partnerships with government agencies, or engaging in business with ministries and agencies. The entire investment cycle has been simplified to make Katsina more attractive for investors.

We signed other MOUs covering education service delivery, digital literacy, education technology, financial modelling for IGR, and several others. These partners are now working with the relevant ministries and agencies to implement their projects.

We know every successful journey comes with challenges. What challenges have you encountered?

Yes, like you rightly mentioned, challenges are inevitable.

One of the major early challenges was the need to widen sensitisation across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) so they fully understand our mandate. Our board does not implement projects directly we only identify partners, create linkages between them and the implementing MDAs, and coordinate activities. This sometimes causes confusion for MDAs that expect us to implement directly.

Another big challenge is that we review all Bills of Quantities (BOQs) for government civil works new construction, renovations, and rehabilitation. That means visiting schools, hospitals, markets, offices, and roads. This requires extensive manpower, yet our staff strength is still inadequate. Although the state has approved additional staff for us, there remains a significant gap.

Another challenge is turnaround time. Sometimes we need detailed information from MDAs, and compiling such information can take days or weeks because of the volume. This can delay implementation.

For 2026, one of our key performance indicators is to drastically reduce the time required to accomplish tasks. We want to become faster and more efficient.

Looking at sustainability, what plans do you have to sustain the achievements recorded so far?

Sustainability is central to our strategy. We work closely with all MDAs to build their capacity so that our role becomes lighter over time. The goal is for every MDA to operate using the governance-for-development model that is, keeping accurate real-time records, using data for decision-making, training staff based on needs, and ensuring recruitment is merit-based.

If every ministry does this, our external coordination will become easier and development will be seamless across the state. We want a civil service where every officer has the skills to drive sustainable development without waiting for external support.

Given all these, how do you assess the performance of this administration as we approach the end of its first four years?

This administration started with strong energy, passion, and commitment to deliver results quickly and with impact. From May 29th, 2023 to date, the achievements across all sectors are enormous education, health, agriculture, social services, financial services, livelihoods there is no sector untouched.

Even though His Excellency keeps saying he has not yet achieved all he intends, I can confidently say the trajectory is very positive.

For example, in education, the government recruited 7,312 teachers within the first year something unprecedented since 1999. The state also trained 10,000 teachers, in addition to another 4,000 trained by development partners, on pedagogy, classroom management, content review, and lesson planning.

In health, many hospitals have been renovated, and one Primary Health Care facility has been constructed in each of the 34 local government areas. Over 200 more PHCs have been constructed at ward level. The government has also recruited more health workers and improved their welfare.

In agriculture, the state procured 400 tractors and established Agricultural Mechanisation Centres across zones and LGAs to bring modern farming tools closer to farmers.

In transportation, the government recently added 14 new vehicles to the already existing fleet, easing the transportation burden for citizens.

For youth empowerment, thousands of young people have been trained on entrepreneurship through KASEDA and other programmes, with many receiving small loans and capital to support MSMEs.

From a development perspective, the achievements are huge and continue to grow. It will be difficult for any future administration to match the governor’s energy, passion, and delivery speed.

Do you enjoy working with His Excellency, the Governor?

Yes, absolutely. His Excellency has fulfilled all his promises of providing smooth, interference-free support to the board. Whenever we propose a solution, he only asks for justification based on evidence. Once we provide that, we receive approval, financial backing, moral support, and the full mandate to implement. It is a very supportive working relationship.

What message do you have for the people of Katsina State?

The dream of building the Katsina we want lies in all of us. The government has its role—to implement projects and provide an enabling environment. But citizens must also protect and support these projects.

Support does not always have to be financial, it can be moral support, goodwill messages, prayers, or volunteer contributions. We all have a dream of a better Katsina, and that dream will remain only a dream unless we actively contribute.

So I call on all Katsina citizens within and outside the state to support the government by addressing skill gaps, supporting youth, and contributing in any way possible to our collective development.