The Project Coordinator of Stallion Times Media Services, Isiyaku Ahmed, emphasized that building stakeholders’ capacity is crucial for effective engagement with the government and civil society to establish a permanent dialogue mechanism for participatory governance.
In Nigeria, citizen engagement suffers due to severe public mistrust in the government’s capacity to implement public policies that reflect citizens’ interests.
One of the participants in the meeting, Dr. Abdussalam Muhammad Kani, explained that the permanent dialogue mechanism is a process designed to bring together the government, civil society, and other groups to propose actions that develop a culture of transparency and accountability in Kano.
The aims of the permanent dialogue include reducing social tensions and conflicts by aligning the actions of various segments of society within the state, he added.
Malam Yunusa Hamza highlighted that there are many ways to monitor government activities through social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.
He further stated that effective citizen engagement requires lead actors, such as local governments, to provide opportunities and establish themselves as legitimate actors involved in the organization of innovation within existing organizations.
The innovative approach of the permanent dialogue mechanism fosters partnerships with civil society and the media to promote citizen engagement in development initiatives. This holds the potential to contribute to more inclusive public policies, enhance trust in institutions, and facilitate lasting solutions to societal challenges.
The training aimed to build the capacity of stakeholders on the structure and strategies for effective engagement with state and non-state actors, including the private sector, and to establish a permanent dialogue mechanism for participatory governance.
Representatives of the Council of Ulama, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), and journalists from print, electronic, and online media in Kano were among those trained on capacity building for the permanent dialogue mechanism by Stallion Times Media Services.
