By Salamat Abu
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has trained desk officers in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) on effective implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) 2024-2028.
The Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Dr Tony Ojukwu, described the virtual training on Monday as a mid-term activity under the NAP.
Ojukwu said the training was designed to carry MDAs along and strengthen implementation of the action plan.
“The NAP is Nigeria’s commitment to peace, security and human rights,” he said.
He said MDA desk officers were central to the implementation process because they understood the programmes, challenges and outcomes within their respective institutions.
“As MDA desk officers, you see the programmes, the challenges and the results. The questionnaire is our tool to capture that reality.
“This will be an exceptional case where there is a plan and evidence of implementation,” he said.
Also speaking, the consultant to the commission, Mrs Ifeoma Nwakama, described desk officers as human rights champions in their various organisations.
She said the training was intended to acquaint participants with their responsibilities and the monitoring tools developed for the implementation process.
According to her, the questionnaires, designed on Google Forms, contain questions tailored to the thematic responsibilities of different MDAs.
Nwakama said communication with MDAs would be channelled primarily through the desk officers to ensure uniform understanding and minimise delays as the process progressed to more technical stages.
She urged participants to provide accurate information, noting that factual reporting could help identify implementation gaps and attract support for addressing them.
“Challenges that are not identified will continue to exist, while those identified could become a basis for attracting funding into the country or state,” she said.
Nwakama said the first questionnaire, a 146-page document, would only display sections relevant to each participating MDA.
She advised MDAs with more than one desk officer to submit a single questionnaire to avoid duplication.
According to her, the second questionnaire focuses on business and human rights and is specifically designed for selected regulatory agencies.
She urged participants to watch out for the questionnaire link in the coming weeks and collaborate with relevant units in their MDAs to ensure accurate submissions.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that participants at the virtual training were drawn from Kogi, Benue, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa and Ogun states, among others. NAN
