The Katsina state government on Tuesday, September 22, said governors of the north-west states are seeking international financing and private investment to implement a regional plan to tackle insecurity, create jobs and improve social services.
The state government said the north-west peace, security and development framework 2026–2030 was presented to development institutions and investors in New York at an event held on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
The seven states, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara, adopted the framework in March 2026.
According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the New York meeting sought partnerships and financing for the implementation of the framework.
UNDP said the framework was developed with its technical support and funding from the German government through the north-west prevention facility project.
The agency said the initiative aims to develop projects capable of attracting public funding, development assistance and private investment.
Priority sectors under the framework include agriculture and livestock, renewable energy, trade infrastructure, technology and social services.
Katsina state governor Dikko Radda, who chairs the north-west governors’ forum, said individual states could not adequately address the region’s security challenges on their own.
According to a statement by his spokesperson, Ibrahim Mohammed, Radda said security operations must be accompanied by measures to address poverty, unemployment and displacement.
“Security must be accompanied by opportunity. Stabilisation must be accompanied by development. And public investment must create space for responsible private capital,” Radda said.
He urged development institutions to coordinate their support across the seven states and called on financial institutions and businesses to invest in underserved communities.
The governor also said the states must improve coordination, strengthen institutions and establish accountability mechanisms for the implementation of the framework.
The forum’s director-general, Maryam Yahaya, said the framework emerged from the inaugural north-west peace and security summit held in Katsina in 2024.
She said consultations continued in 2025 with governments, communities, civil society organisations, traditional institutions, women and young people before the governors adopted the plan.
United Nations (UN) deputy secretary-general Amina Mohammed called for coordinated financing involving state governments, development institutions and private investors.
She said the North-west’s role in food production and trade meant that instability in the region had consequences beyond the seven states.
UNDP associate administrator Haoliang Xu said the agency would help the states coordinate implementation, strengthen institutions and develop projects capable of attracting investment.
The financing appeal comes amid displacement caused by attacks in parts of the region.
In Katsina, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) recorded 3,509 people displaced from 524 households following attacks on August 6 and 8, 2026.
The affected communities were Na’alma in Malumfashi local government area, Turare in Dutsin-Ma, and Tsiga in Bakori.
The figures were based on information from key informants, according to the agency’s assessment.
According to the Katsina government statement, participants at the New York meeting included Zamfara state governor Dauda Lawal, Kebbi state governor Nasir Idris and Sokoto state deputy governor Idris Mohammed Gobir, alongside other government officials, development institutions and private-sector representatives.
UNDP’s account of the meeting did not specify an overall funding target, the amounts individual states would contribute, or any confirmed financial pledges from prospective partners.
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