Grassroots Centre Africa, with support from LEAP Africa through the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF), has completed training sessions for community influencers in Bauchi State.
The program, “Building Powerful Community Influencers,” was held from September 4th to 5th in Tiffi Guda and from September 7th to 8th in Dingis, covering four communities in Ningi and Alkaleri Local Government Areas (LGAs).
Fifty participants received training on budget tracking, public expenditure tracking, priority setting, gender mainstreaming, and advocacy strategies.
Mohammed Chiroma Hassan, Executive Director of Grassroots Centre Africa, explained: “The community structure we have established will serve as the mouthpiece of these communities, organizing and mobilizing them to hold the government accountable.”
Hassan emphasized the diversity of the training, which included representatives from youth and women leaders, people with special needs, traditional institutions, farmers’ associations, and religious leaders.
“This diversity ensures that the influencing platforms reflect the voices and priorities of the entire community,” he said.
The chairman of the Ward Development Committee, one of the participants, said, “Our lives as a community will never be the same. We are now equipped with the right tools to engage the government and bring the needed development to our communities.”
