ABUJA – (Budget & National Planning Ministry Report) – The Nigerian Association of Evaluators (NAE) has formally taken off as an umbrella body for all the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Associations in Nigeria.
The report from the Publicity Department of the Ministry on Monday March 25, 2019 indicated that the National M & E Office of the Ministry of Budget and National Planning with the active support of UNICEF and UNFPA spearheaded the process of getting the NAE registered as a full – fledged professional body in Nigeria.
“The UNICEF provided both the financial and technical support towards ensuring that the idea of NAE comes into fruition, working closely with the Federal Ministry of Budget and National Planning,” the report explained.
While commenting on the present status of the profession, the Director of the Measurement & Evaluation Department in the Ministry of Budget and National Planning, Zakari Lawal stated that the discordent manner of operations of several M&E Associations in Nigeria prompted the Ministry to convene all stakeholders in a meeting for discussions on the need to have an umbrella body that will professionally coordinate the activities of M&E in Nigeria.
He adjudged that the Ministry faced with the discordant manner in which several M&E Associations embarrassed Nigeria at International Conferences by competing to claim the righful representative of Nigeria had no option than to move in to sanitise the area.
He described the journey which gave birth to the NAE umbrella body as eventful, commencing from year 2012 to it’s formal registration in 2018.
He assured that the Government through the Ministry of Budget and National Planning will work closely with the NAE, in order to make the body attain optimal functionality in it’s activities.
In his remark during the NAE 3rd Annual General Meeting and formal inauguration of NAE Executive Committee in Abuja, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of NAE, Shamsudeen Usman (Dr), who is a former Minister of Budget and National Planning commended the commitment and resilience of the stakeholders for having come this far with the body.
Usman lauded the support and leadership of the Ministry of Budget and National Planning for seeing the emergence of a vibrant NAE, appreciating UNICEF Nigeria for the consistent financial and technical support it has provided towards the formation of NAE.
