The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has pledged to deepen collaboration with the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) to strengthen local government administration, promote fiscal autonomy and ensure that increased resources translate into meaningful development at the grassroots.
The commitment was made when a delegation of RMAFC Federal Commissioners, led by Hon. Aliyu Abdulkadir, Federal Commissioner representing Nasarawa State and Chairman of the Commission’s State and Local Government Monitoring Committee, paid a courtesy visit to ALGON National President, Hon. (Engr.) Bello Lawal, at the Association’s National Secretariat in Abuja.
Speaking on behalf of the RMAFC Chairman, Dr Mohammed Bello Shehu, OFR, PhD, Abdulkadir said the newly constituted committee was established to strengthen engagement with the third tier of government and identify practical measures for improving local government administration.
He explained that RMAFC, as a constitutional body, is empowered to monitor accruals and disbursements into and from the Federation Account to which local governments are constitutionally entitled.
Abdulkadir assured ALGON that the Commission was committed to supporting the implementation of local government autonomy following the recent Supreme Court pronouncement on the matter.
He, however, urged local governments to strengthen their internally generated revenue and reduce excessive dependence on allocations from the Federation Account.
Also speaking, Senator Marafa Bashir Abba, Federal Commissioner representing Taraba State and Vice Chairman of the State and Local Government Monitoring Committee, said the engagement would provide an opportunity to generate practical ideas for strengthening the committee’s work and deepening collaboration with ALGON.
He said the partnership would also help address some of the challenges confronting local governments, including issues relating to local government elections.
Responding, ALGON National President, Hon. Bello Lawal, welcomed the initiative, describing RMAFC’s engagement as timely and critical to the future of grassroots governance.
“When you empower local government, you empower the whole country because local government is where people actually live,” Lawal said.
He added that strong local governments constituted the foundation for national development.
Lawal called for greater participation of local governments in revenue allocation processes and assured RMAFC of ALGON’s readiness to collaborate in the areas of capacity building, fiscal discipline and effective utilisation of public resources.
Other members of the RMAFC delegation included Hon. Kabeer Muhammed Usman, Federal Commissioner representing Gombe State; Hon. Madu Ali Juluri, Federal Commissioner representing Yobe State; Hon. Rabiu Garba, Federal Commissioner representing Zamfara State; and Hon. (Amb.) Jacob Ayuba Mbako, Federal Commissioner representing the Federal Capital Territory.
The engagement highlighted RMAFC’s commitment to strategic partnerships aimed at promoting fiscal accountability, effective revenue management, local government autonomy and inclusive development at the grassroots.