By Christy Tamai
Ward Facilitators recruited under the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up (NFWP-SU) Project in Plateau State have completed a capacity-building training on the Community Operations Manual (COM), pledging their commitment to ensuring effective implementation of the programme at the grassroots.
The training, which brought together successful Ward Facilitators from participating Local Government Areas, was designed to equip them with the requisite knowledge, practical skills and understanding of the programme’s implementation strategies, operational guidelines and community engagement processes.
Participants were taken through key components of the Community Operations Manual, including the formation and management of Women Affinity Groups (WAGs), group governance and effectiveness, financial literacy, savings mobilisation, community participation, accountability, inclusion, as well as the roles and responsibilities of Ward Facilitators in ensuring successful project delivery.
At the conclusion of the training, participants expressed appreciation to the Plateau State Governor, Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hon. Caroline Panglang Dafur, and the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up Project Coordinating Unit for the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and skills required to deliver on their assignments.
They pledged to translate the lessons learnt into practical action in their respective communities, assuring that they would work closely with community leaders, relevant stakeholders and women to facilitate the establishment and effective functioning of Women Affinity Groups.
The Ward Facilitators also reaffirmed their commitment to upholding the programme’s core principles of transparency, accountability, inclusiveness, teamwork and community ownership, while ensuring that eligible women are adequately sensitised, mobilised and supported to participate in the initiative.
They acknowledged that their responsibilities extend beyond mobilising women, stressing the importance of providing guidance, strengthening group structures, promoting positive social norms and ensuring that the programme’s interventions deliver tangible improvements in the economic and social wellbeing of women.
Speaking on the significance of the training, the Plateau State Project Coordinator, Barr. Nanret Jane Agaba, emphasised the strategic role of Ward Facilitators as frontline implementers whose effectiveness would significantly determine the programme’s success at the community level.
Agaba explained that the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up Project is aimed at expanding women’s economic opportunities, strengthening financial inclusion and building their capacity to participate meaningfully in household and community development.
She highlighted the programme’s focus on collective savings, access to financial services, livelihood opportunities, capacity development and sustainable community-based support systems as critical pathways to improving the economic resilience and wellbeing of women.
The Project Coordinator noted that the successful completion of the training marks an important step towards grassroots implementation, expressing the expectation that Ward Facilitators would take the knowledge acquired to their respective communities and ensure that the programme’s objectives translate into measurable benefits for women.
With the conclusion of the training, the Ward Facilitators are expected to commence their community-level responsibilities, strengthening women’s participation, collective action and economic empowerment across participating communities in Plateau State.
