Stakeholders ask FG to leverage social cohesion data for effective policies

Stakeholders have asked the federal government to utilise social cohesion data to enhance policies in addressing development issues across the country.

They made the demand on Tuesday during a workshop organised by Africa Polling Institute (API), an independent, non-profit opinion research think-tank.

The workshop, supported by the Ford Foundation, was themed, ‘The Use of Social Cohesion Data in Enhancing National Policies and Programmes and Promoting Effective Media Reportage’.

Social cohesion data measures indicators such as institutional trust, social inclusion, perceived fairness, and the degree of solidarity or division across ethnic, religious, or political lines.

The data helps policymakers and the government to understand how united or fragmented a community is.

Speaking at the event, Bell Ihua, API executive director, said Nigeria’s social cohesion data should not be abandoned on the shelf but must be used for development.

“So, it is for us to use this data we share with the government so that the government can begin to do what it needs to do,” he said.

“We want the social cohesion data to permeate society such that public institutions integrate it into their policy and programme planning, and media practitioners engage in socially cohesive news reportage.

“API’s first major finding is that citizens have little trust in the government, governors, and public institutions.

“The second big issue we found is that citizens are united in a shared struggle. You know, we didn’t use to have this before, but the data shows that citizens are united in a shared struggle.

“We want the government to be aware because by being aware, they can now use this data for their policy and planning.”

Soji Adeniyi, a member of the API board of trustees, said social cohesion should be viewed and understood through data.

“It is not enough for us as a country to think that perception is everything. Perception has its place and scientific data has its place,” he said.

“We have been gathering this data since 2019, and it has been changing yearly based on the perception of what is happening within the country.

“We felt it was time to start sharing this data so that those institutions that the government constitutionally has put together to address those challenges will rise to the challenge.”

Steve Ogidan, CEO of Successory Nigeria Ltd, said social cohesion data can help the government address issues such as youth and women’s inclusion and marginalised communities.

He said performance-based budgeting would lead to social investment policies and targeted interventions that strengthen social cohesion.

Representatives of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), National Orientation Agency (NOA), and National Sports Commission (NSC), among others, attended the event.