Civil Society organizations (CSOs) have been identified as architects of change in the government landscape that advocate for change and transparency.
This was part of a resolution during a session with citizen groups and the Parliamentary Staff Association (PASAN) Kano chapter for the Citizens Legislative Accountability/Agenda Platform (CLAP) initiative in Kano.
Presenting a paper titled: unveiling the Citizens Legislative Accountability Agenda, Comrade Safiyanu Lawan Bichi of Kano Budget Working Group, highlighted citizens’ activities that make the budget process effective
This includes providing capacity building on budget tracking, advocating for increased access to budget documents as well as building a culture of transparency and accountability.
“Citizens organize community town hall meetings and generate citizens input across LGAs with various house committees and respective members by constituents ”
The Secretary House Standing Committee on Higher Education Kano State House of Assembly, Alhaji Muhammad Lawal Tijjani highlighted that the functions of the Parliamentary Staff Association (PASAN), are advocating for specific legislative changes and promoting or opposing particular laws or policies.
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He stressed that PASAN aims to provide a platform for members to come together and take collective action in addition to advocating for members’ rights, interests and welfare.
“By working together PASAN and CBOs can strengthen the legislative process, increase transparency and promote legislative values”
The women leader Parliamentary Staff Association (PASAN) Kano, Hajiya Lami Yakasai called for more inclusion of women in committees and other positions within the assembly.
Earlier, the state partnership facilitator, Partnership to Engage Reform and Learn (PER), Yunusa Hamza explained that the objective of the session was to strengthen the collaborative engagement between citizen groups and the parliamentary staff for an effective legislative process.
He said participants would also understand the Nexus of dual role in promoting the legislative procedures.
Paradigm news reports that the session supported by PERL FCDO, paved the way for participants to develop an advocacy strategy for the implementation of the CLAP agenda.