Jigawa Assembly Passes Bill to Drive Community Participation in Governance

The Jigawa State House of Assembly has passed a bill seeking to encourage community participation in local governance and development programmes.

The legislation followed the adoption of a report by the House Committee on Local Government during plenary on Thursday in Dutse.

The chairman of the committee, Aminu Zakari, said the House, at its sitting on December 3, 2025, deliberated on the bill seeking to provide a community-based structure at ward levels to promote community participation in local governance.

He said the bill would facilitate the execution of community development projects across the 27 local government areas of the state.

He said the committee presented a report following a series of meetings, stakeholder engagements and a holistic review of the draft bill.

According to Mr Zakari, the bill seeks to provide an enabling platform for the participation of community members in local governance and for mobilising resources at the grassroots to enhance service delivery.

The bill, he said, aims to provide modalities for the effective implementation of the law and efficient management of resources toward actualising social protection and security.

“All provisions were examined closely and justified accordingly to come up with clear and concise final draf bill, free of ambiguity, and the bill, when passed into law, will guide communities in ensuring sustainability, ownership and control over resources as well as minimise embezzlement and mismanagement,” he said.

Mr Zakari said the committee made seven recommendations for deliberation and adoption to grant opportunities for the inclusion of constituents in government policies, projects and related services.

The House, presided over by the Speaker, Haruna Aliyu, unanimously adopted the report.