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Dauda Lawal’s reform agenda transforms Zamfara, delivers landmark development across sectors

Dauda Lawal’s reform agenda transforms Zamfara, delivers landmark development across sectors
By: Zagazola Makama
In just over two years in office, Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara has emerged as a transformational leader, repositioning the state with bold policy reforms, critical infrastructure renewal, and people-centered governance that prioritises security, healthcare, education, civil service reform, and economic revitalisation.
Governor Lawal’s Rescue Agenda, built on transparency, capacity development, and institutional strengthening, is steadily reversing years of systemic decay, offering the people of Zamfara renewed hope in a government that works for them.
The Governor’s impact is visible across the state, from newly equipped hospitals and modernised schools to the strengthened security architecture and improved public transportation, all executed with a focus on accountability and sustainability.

Health sector revolution
One of Governor Lawal’s most visible accomplishments is the overhaul of Zamfara’s healthcare system. Upon assumption of office in May 2023, he declared a state of emergency in the sector after discovering that only one ultrasound machine served nearly six million people and that machine was held together with seal tape. In response, the administration embarked on a comprehensive needs assessment and launched a phased rehabilitation of general hospitals across the state.
Within 12 months, Governor Lawal commissioned fully renovated and equipped General Hospitals in Gusau, Anka, Maradun, Maru, Kaura, and Nasarawa Burkullu. Each of these facilities now boasts modern amenities, including Accident and Emergency Units, Special Care Baby Units (SCBUs), Maternity Wards, Radiology Departments, Dental Clinics, Orthopedic Wards, and Operating Theatres.
In Anka, the governor delivered a state-of-the-art facility with newly constructed laboratory, maternity, and emergency units, alongside refurbished wards, pharmacy blocks, and residential quarters for medical staff. To complement these infrastructure upgrades, the administration has procured cutting-edge medical equipment, implemented biomedical training for health workers, and institutionalised a health governance model that emphasises maintenance and service delivery.

Security support and community policing
Governor Lawal has treated security as the bedrock of development in Zamfara. In a landmark gesture, his government distributed 140 new operational vehicles to security agencies operating across the state. These include double-cabin pick-up trucks and Buffalo vehicles to enhance mobility, response time, and overall efficiency in combating banditry and violent crimes. The Governor also inaugurated the Community Protection Guards, a state-owned security outfit designed to supplement federal forces and engage communities in grassroots surveillance and early warning systems.
These strategic investments are already yielding results, with improved coordination among security outfits and a noticeable return of normalcy in areas previously plagued by violence.
Education transformation
Education, another critical pillar of the Rescue Agenda, has seen similar focus. In January 2024, the Governor launched an aggressive school rehabilitation drive, beginning with the Government Girls Arabic School (GGAS) Gusau one of the state’s oldest institutions. Following a devastating fire that razed five student hostels, the administration not only rebuilt them but expanded the renovation to include over 94 different structures. These included science laboratories, ICT centres, classrooms, libraries, mosques, staff quarters, and toilet facilities — transforming the school into a modern learning environment offering science, arts, and commercial subjects.
The initiative is part of a broader education recovery framework that aims to upgrade boarding schools across the state, provide modern teaching tools, and re-train educators to meet global standards.

Civil service reform and institutional renewal
In an unprecedented move, Governor Lawal introduced a competency-based examination for directors aspiring to become Permanent Secretaries the first of its kind in Zamfara’s history. This reform led to the appointment of twelve Permanent Secretaries based strictly on merit, marking a turning point in bureaucratic professionalism. As part of a commitment to institutional strengthening, the state government completed the phased renovation of the JB Yakubu State Secretariat Complex. Blocks A and C have been fully rehabilitated, with Block B to follow, providing dignified and functional workspaces for civil servants. In another show of compassion and fiscal discipline, Governor Lawal cleared over ₦13 billion in gratuity arrears owed to retirees — some dating back several years. He also introduced the 13th-month salary bonus, rewarding productivity and boosting staff morale.
Economic diversification and public transit innovation
Recognising the need for sustainable economic growth, the Lawal administration unveiled 50 brand-new mass transit buses to ease transportation within and outside the state. These buses, equipped with real-time monitoring systems and free Wi-Fi, aim to reduce travel hardship and enhance public revenue collection through a digital fleet management platform. The move points to the governor’s drive to create jobs, reduce transportation costs, and modernise Zamfara’s commercial landscape.
A legacy of people-first governance
Throughout his 2 years tenure so far, Governor Lawal has consistently affirmed that his vision goes beyond infrastructure. “We believe that a motivated and professional civil service is the backbone of good governance,” he said at the commissioning of the Secretariat Complex.
Indeed, the Governor’s style meticulous, inclusive, and performance driven, is redefining public service delivery in a state long ravaged by insecurity and underdevelopment.
As he continues to roll out projects and policy reforms, the people of Zamfara are beginning to witness a renaissance grounded in hope, capacity, and progress.
With more hospitals, schools, roads, and economic opportunities in the pipeline, Governor Dauda Lawal stands out as one of Nigeria’s most purposeful and visionary leaders — a man committed not just to governing, but to rescuing and rebuilding Zamfara for generations to come.
Zagazola Makama is a Counter Insurgency Expert and Security Analyst in the Lake Chad Region
Dauda Lawal’s reform agenda transforms Zamfara, delivers landmark development across sectors
News
Nigerian Air Force Neutralises Terrorists in Successful Air Interdiction at Maisani

Nigerian Air Force Neutralises Terrorists in Successful Air Interdiction at Maisani
By: Zagazola Makama
The Nigerian Air Component of Operation Hadin Kai have executed a coordinated strike on a major terrorist enclave located at Maisani in the Timbuktu Triangle general area of Borno State, killing several ISWAP terrorists.
Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama that the air interdiction mission conducted on May 4, 2025, at approximately 1800 hours, was informed by credible intelligence and sustained surveillance, targeted terrorists’ structures cleverly concealed and camouflaged under thick shrubs in the area.
The sources said that using advanced platforms, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) conducted a focused Air Interdiction (AI) mission, resulting in the destruction of the identified enemy hideouts and the neutralisation of an unconfirmed number of insurgent fighters.
According to the sources, Post-strike Battle Damage Assessment (BDA) obtained from our Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platforms confirmed that the airstrike achieved its intended objectives, dealing a significant blow to terrorists.
Nigerian Air Force Neutralises Terrorists in Successful Air Interdiction at Maisani
News
Nigeria Looks to World Bank to Tackle Challenges of National Capital Accounting

Nigeria Looks to World Bank to Tackle Challenges of National Capital Accounting
By: Michael Mike
As the world marks the 2025 Environment Day, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has appealed to the World Bank for support on capacity building, data and in addressing the challenges poised by Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) in the country.
Head of Department, National Accounts Energy and Environment at the NBS, Dr. Baba Madu made the appeal at the 2025 Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) Conference on Thursday in Abuja with support from the World Bank in. collaboration with the NBS and the Federal Ministry of Environment.
Madu while noting that the NCA was a new area Nigeria must exploit to further boost the nation’s economy, said for Nigeria to grow and be at par with other developed nations, there was need to account for her natural resources.
He said: “NCA has been tasked with the crucial role of integrating natural capital into economic measurement. It is impossible to measure the economy accurately without accounting for natural resources. Issues such as environmental degradation, afforestation, desertification, and climate change all directly impact productivity.
“Productivity in turn, influences output—one of the core components of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). These environmental factors must be reflected across all economic activity sectors to present a more accurate picture of national output.”
While stating that Nigeria currently has data on NCA in Nigeria, the NBS official however raised concerns over the huge data gap from relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the environment sector.
He said: “We are not doing badly but we need to improve on what we are doing. In terms of data sources, I can tell you there’s a big gap because these are new areas needed to be exploited.”
Programme Leader on Sustainable Development at the World Bank, Vina Vutukuru, said there was need to jointly
explore the vital role of national accounting in national development plans and to brainstorm on how Nigeria could institutionalize it.
He said: “Establishing the national capital accounting as part of the national account system will allow us to measure the economic value of ecosystem services such as clean air, water and biodiversity which are essential for our well-being and economic prosperity.”
Vutukuru commended Nigeria for having “very bold ambitions” as far as responding to climate change was concerned saying, “That shows the commitment of the policy makers here towards the issue of climate.
“But I think to back up that aspiration and the aggressive goals that Nigeria has set for itself, the foundational thing for those goals to materialize those objectives to come true is a very strong natural account system.”
Head of Media, National Council on Climate Change Secretariat (NCCCS), Chioma Azie who represented her Director General, Dr. Nkiruka Maduekwe at the event, described Nigeria as a very ambitious country, stressing that natural resources was instrumental to achieving all the objective of climate action.
She said: “Technology, policy reforms, behavioral changes has a role to play but natural resources is very key because they’re underpinning the mitigation and adaptation for climate action.
“If you look at Nigeria’s NDC, the NCA is an avenue to provide raw materials that we could use to develop mitigation and adaptation strategies.
“If you look at what we have done in terms of this NDC in 2020.which is the second leg of the NDC, we identified a lot of mitigation activities within this mentioned sectors of ours. In agricultural sector we talked about smart agriculture. What is smart agriculture without natural resources?
“We talked about biomass, what is biomass without natural resources? We also spoke about land use changes and that is natural resources, we talk about natural solutions and we talked about also afforestation, reafforestation. Those are mitigation potentials of our NDC. So, we cannot achieve our NDC without SEEA.
“What you cannot be able to account for is recorded as if it is not done so if we know what is existing in terms of the reservoirs we have for natural resources, it can inform the scope of the mitigation activities we’re going to be imputing in the NDC 3.0,” she said.
Nigeria Looks to World Bank to Tackle Challenges of National Capital Accounting
News
NIMC Insists All Its Verification Services, Functional, Accessible

NIMC Insists All Its Verification Services, Functional, Accessible
.. Says Police Service Commission Not Denied Access
By: Michael Mike
The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said all its verification service platforms are functional and accessible to all partners including all security agencies.
The Commission, in a statement on Thursday by its spokesman, Dr. Kayode Adegoke said it is aware of the purported ”inability of the Police Service Commission (PSC) to access the NIMC verification server,” insisting that the “information is not only misleading but also inaccurate.”
Adegoke said: “To set the record straight, the NIMC granted verification access to all Nigerian Police formations for the verification of the National Identification Number (NIN). The NPF, PSC and other security agencies have been enjoying uninterrupted verification services for over five years.
“NIMC has provided top-notch verification services for recruitment into the Nigeria Police Force, as conducted by the PSC and at no time have there been any complaints or issues regarding NIN Verification by the NPF or PSC.”
Adegoke, in the statement, claimed that: “The Commission has a robust and harmonious working relationship with the Nigerian Police Force and the Police Service Commission. The Information Communications and Technology (ICT) department of the Nigeria Police Force is actively managing the long-standing verification and integration service between the NIMC and all Nigeria Police formations. NIMC will continue to provide flawless verification services for the purpose of recruitment, security mapping, cybercrime control, and any other security matters.”
He explained that: “The framework by which NIMC provides services to the security agencies was recently restructured for standardization and effective implementation, following consultation with the Office of the National Security Adviser, and NPF has confirmed the verification services have continued to be available. We therefore believe that any service interruption experienced by PSC may be due to internal matters.”
He promised that: “NIMC is committed to providing excellent verification services to the PSC, NPF and all its partners but the terms and conditions inherent must be adhered to for uninterrupted flow of service.”
NIMC Insists All Its Verification Services, Functional, Accessible
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