The Nasarawa State Government has concluded plans to establish a security surveillance base in each of its three senatorial zones to enhance security across the state.
The State’s Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Planning, Hajiya Munira Abdullahi, stated this during a citizens’ budget town hall consultation for Nasarawa West zone, yesterday in Keffi.
The commissioner, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mr. Polinus Wahe, made the disclosure while responding to stakeholders’ quest for improved security in the state.
She reiterated Gov. Abdullahi Sule’s commitment to the protection of lives and properties of all citizens through proactive security measures.
According to the commissioner, the surveillance bases will be located at the flashpoints in the three senatorial zones and equipped with modern technological surveillance equipments to enhance intelligence-driven security.
She maintained that the state would work in collaborate with security agencies to ensure the effectiveness of the surveillance bases.
The commissioner, while declaring open the citizens’ town hall consultation, said it was a symbol of the state government’s unwavering commitment to inclusive governance, transparency, and participatory budgeting.
“The theme for this year: ‘Fostering Collaboration on Resource Allocation – Key to Participation in Governance’ , speaks directly to the core of our vision of ensuring that every citizen, regardless of background or status, has a say in how government resources are allocated”, she said.
According to Abdullahi, since inception of citizen budget engagement in Nasarawa, the State has made significant progress in ensuring that budgeting is no longer a top-down affair.
“Budgeting in Nasarawa State is now a people-centrered process where your voices, your needs, and your aspirations inform and shape government planning and implementation,” she added.
The commissioner, therefore, urged the participants to speak freely and articulate the needs of the people they represent, saying that all their submissions would be reviewed and considered in the 2026 budget.
“Our goal remains to build a budget that truly reflects the priorities of the people,” she said.
Also speaking, Mr Peter Akolo – Ataka, Director, Budget in the ministry said that participants at the townhall consultation were drawn from the informal sector from the Western Senatorial zone comprised of Keffi, Kokona, Karu, Nasarawa and Toto local government areas of the state.
He said the participants included representatives of youth groups, women organisations, faith-based organisations, farmers associations, traders associations, Civil Society Organisations amongst others.
Akolo-Ataka said that as part of efforts to ensure a robust engagement, the ministry provided an abridge version of the 2025 budget – both in English and an Hausa translation for better understanding by the participants.