The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals, Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, in a recent advocacy and sensitization campaign held in Kano and Ondo states, highlighted a troubling statistic: 63% of Nigerians are still multi-dimensionally poor.
This figure underscores the significant challenges Nigeria faces in meeting the SDGs, a global agenda aimed at ending poverty, ensuring health and well-being, and promoting education, among other goals.
Adefulire’s remarks come amid growing concern that global progress on the SDGs is stalling. Recent reports, including the Multidimensional Poverty Index Report (2022) and the National Bureau of Statistics’ Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey Report (2022), reveal stark disparities in poverty levels across different regions of Nigeria. These reports indicate that the northern regions experience higher poverty rates compared to the south, with rural areas bearing a greater burden of multidimensional poverty.
During the campaign, Adefulire emphasized that addressing these issues requires intensified efforts from both state and local governments. She noted that despite Nigeria’s commitment to the SDGs, the country faces significant hurdles, including the “Triple C Crisis”—the combined impacts of COVID-19, climate change, and conflicts—that have impeded global progress. As of 2023, only 15% of SDGs targets are on track worldwide.
“The global community is lagging behind in efforts to attain the Sustainable Development Goals, and Nigeria is facing various challenges,” Adefulire stated. “Therefore, it’s imperative for all stakeholders, particularly state and local governments, to accelerate progress.”
She further explained that “Nigeria is committed to achieving the SDGs, but we’re faced with issues such as Triple C Crisis – COVID, Climate Change, and Conflicts, which have put implementation off-track globally. Only 15% of SDGs targets are on track as of 2023. In Nigeria, 63% or 133 million people are still multi-dimensionally poor, with poverty levels varying significantly across states and geopolitical zones. Multidimensional poverty is higher in rural areas, and 65% of poor people live in the north, while 35% live in the south.”
Adefulire also stressed the need for a unified approach to meet the SDGs. “The Federal Government has demonstrated strong commitment to implementing the SDGs, and we need sub-national governments to match these efforts. Institutional frameworks have been established to guarantee effective implementation, but we require a whole-of-society approach to achieve the SDGs,” she said. “As we approach the 2030 deadline, we must recommit to accelerating SDGs’ implementation, especially at the state and local governments level. We need expertise and resources from all sectors to deliver on the SDGs. The SDGs require a whole-of-society approach and clearly cannot be achieved with stand-alone policies and projects. They must be carefully integrated into national and sub-national policies and development plans.”
In response to Adefulire’s call for increased action, Governors Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo and Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano state both pledged their commitment to the SDGs. Governor Aiyedatiwa expressed confidence in the potential for progress through collaboration and innovation, stating, “I am confident that through seamless collaboration and innovation, we can make significant progress towards achieving the SDGs at the sub-national level. We recognize the importance of these goals and are actively working to integrate them into our policies. Together, let us build a future that is sustainable, equitable, and prosperous for all.”
Similarly, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, represented by Shehu Shegagi, reaffirmed Kano State’s dedication to the SDGs, vowing to strive towards achieving the targets and leaving no one behind.
