President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved a ₦17 billion community-led development fund to support projects across Nigeria’s 8,804 wards.
The President also approved the upgrade of the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Training Centre in Zaria to the National Institute of Public Health and Infectious Diseases.
The Federal Government said the new fund will be implemented through a Community-Based National Social Action Fund Taskforce. The aim is to drive grassroots development and speed up socio-economic improvements across the country.
Under the plan, each ward will work with a verified community-based group, organisation or association. The groups will identify and execute projects based on local priorities.
The initiative builds on earlier reforms. These include the Social Action Fund created in September 2023 and the Community-Based Procurement Platform approved in January 2026. The procurement platform was designed to help community organisations handle projects valued at up to ₦50 million.
Implementation is scheduled to run from March 1 to December 2026. A Programme Management Unit based in the Sector-Wide Approach Coordination Office of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare will oversee the process.
To fund the programme, the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation have been directed to release ₦17 billion. The funds will be lodged in a ring-fenced special intervention account for implementation, monitoring, communication and accountability.
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, said the initiative reflects a shift to locally driven service delivery.
He said the approach puts communities at the centre of development and allows each ward to focus on its most urgent needs.
According to him, expected interventions include community nutrition support, essential health supplies, and small-scale improvements in schools, health facilities and sanitation systems.
Pate will chair the taskforce. Its members include the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, the Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs, and the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.
Also on the taskforce are the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement, the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, the Chairman of the ICPC, and a National Coordinator.
In a related decision, Tinubu approved the transformation of the Zaria-based training centre into a national public health institute.
The government said the upgrade is intended to strengthen disease surveillance, improve emergency preparedness and boost rapid response capacity.
The new institute will serve as a centre for public health training, research and workforce development. It is expected to improve Nigeria’s readiness for infectious disease threats.
