VICE President Kashim Shettima has charged governors of the 36 states of the federation to prioritize human capital development of their citizens over politics.
He gave the charge during a meeting of the Steering Committee of the Human Capital Development Programme at the State House Abuja.
The Vice President noted that the path chosen by Nigeria in the 21st century can only be determined by the strength of the nation’s workforce, the education of its children, and the well-being of communities across the country.
According to him, “We must go beyond plans and policies. Implementation must be swift, targeted, and unrelenting. The time for incremental change has passed — this is the time for bold, decisive action.
“State-level implementation must be deepened. Our governors and state representatives must prioritise the five key indicators we have identified for tracking HCD progress.
“Regular and structured meetings of State HCD Councils must become non-negotiable, ensuring that human capital development remains at the heart of governance at all levels.”
Vice President Shettima pointed out that history will remember that in a defining moment, the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu “chose to prioritise people over politics, to invest in capacity over convenience, and to build a nation that thrives not despite its challenges, but because we confronted them head-on.”
He further outlined the significant strides made by the HCD Steering Committee to include its expansion to accommodate key cross-cutting sectors, noting that this has strengthened the governance structure.
He called for a nationwide survey to be commissioned for the collection of real-time data on priority indicators.
“We believe that data must drive our decisions. We cannot solve what we do not measure. A nationwide survey must be commissioned to collect real-time data on priority indicators—health, education, and workforce readiness. A nation that aspires to greatness must ground its policies in evidence, not assumptions.
“We must mobilise resources beyond government funding. Traditional financing models alone will not suffice. The Private Sector Partnership Group must take a leadership role in unlocking innovative financing, from impact investments to social impact bonds.
“Our development partners, corporate leaders, and philanthropic institutions must see human capital development not as charity but as an investment in the economic prosperity of our nation,” he said.
Earlier, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, commended the Human Capital Development team on the parameters designed for more information and data, stressing that “economic expansion without human capital development is an effort in futility.”
He, however, advised that as “the world is focusing on Africa because of its growing young population, more attention should be given to the educated, skilled and healthy population.”
Also speaking, the Country Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Ms. Elsie Attafuah, commended the federal government for promoting human capital development as the bedrock of development.
She highlighted a number of projects to support human capital development, including the Nigeria Jubilee Fellows Programme (NJFP) and the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme, noting that Nigeria’s development pathway does not rest on natural resources but on human resources.
In her presentation, Special Adviser to the President on the National Economic Council (NEC) and Climate Change and Coordinator of the Core Working Group of HCD, Ms Rukaiya El-Rufai, reported that the team has since redesigned the HCD governance structure, made advocacy and engaged with stakeholders, administered an ECOWAS grant on the project and developed a HCD dashboard that tracks progress nationally on core areas of health, nutrition, education and labour force.