DIPLOMAN TIMES

Gombe State has announced a ₦3.5 billion commitment to support expansion of the Nigeria for Women Project Scale-Up beyond its three current implementing local government areas, strengthening a programme focused on women's savings, financial inclusion, livelihoods and collective economic activity.

The Nigeria for Women Project Scale-Up programme has received a new state funding commitment in Gombe, with the state government announcing ₦3.5 billion to support the programme and facilitate expansion beyond the three local government areas where it is currently being implemented. The announcement was made during an event in Deba, Yamaltu-Deba Local Government Area, where Women Affinity Group meeting procedures were presented and demonstrated. Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, represented by Deputy Governor Dr Manassah Daniel Jatau, reaffirmed the administration's stated commitment to expanding economic opportunities and financial inclusion for women. The programme is a collaboration involving the World Bank, Federal Government and participating state governments.

The NFWP-SU model is built around Women Affinity Groups, which bring together women aged 18 and above for regular meetings, savings, access to loans, business development and collective economic activities. National Project Coordinator Hadiza Maina explained that the programme is designed to strengthen women's socioeconomic wellbeing through financial empowerment, health and nutrition education, livelihood development and collective economic participation. In Gombe, the programme is currently being implemented in Balanga, Yamaltu-Deba and Funakaye local government areas. The announced state funding is intended to support expansion into other parts of the state rather than merely maintain the programme within those three existing locations.

The state government's position was also linked to a broader policy interest in women's participation beyond household-level economic activity. Governor Yahaya, through his deputy, encouraged women to use available opportunities to improve their livelihoods while becoming more involved in leadership, politics and decision-making. He also said women-focused programmes should be sustained beyond the tenure of a single administration and that institutional frameworks should preserve and expand gains in financial empowerment, entrepreneurship and socioeconomic development. These are policy commitments expressed by the administration and do not, by themselves, establish future implementation outcomes. The ₦3.5 billion commitment is the material new funding announcement in the report.

Women participating in the existing Women Affinity Groups described benefits including improved financial discipline, savings practices and greater capacity to engage in economic activities. Their accounts provide examples from participants already involved in the programme but do not constitute an independent evaluation of its overall impact. The event also demonstrated the group's procedures, including savings collection, inclusion, rotational leadership, regular meetings, record-keeping and loan disbursement. The project task team commended the state government's commitment, while the local government leadership and state women affairs officials expressed support for continued implementation.

As of September 30, 2026, the confirmed development is the announced ₦3.5 billion Gombe State Government commitment to support the Nigeria for Women Project Scale-Up and facilitate expansion beyond Balanga, Yamaltu-Deba and Funakaye. The existing programme is operating through Women Affinity Groups focused on savings, loans, livelihoods and collective economic activity. The expansion itself remains an implementation objective rather than a completed statewide rollout. The immediate next stage is therefore the application of the announced funding and the extension of programme activities into additional areas, subject to the relevant implementation processes.